Renaissance
by Shivakashi
Summary: As if being chosen to take over Gennai's position as the Guardian of the Digital World is enough. Tai has to deal with teen fatherhood, promiscuous hanyous and...Harry Potter? TaiOC with A little HPDigimon xover
1. prologue

01011101010010110111.  
  
Gennai jadedly stared at the flowing codes and numbers in which he was doing his annual inspection to make sure all was well in the digiworld. Letting out a soft sigh, Gennai allowed his eyes to pivot from left to right, scanning the ocean of numbers. For the last 6 months, since the Malomyotismon incident, the digiworld had experienced a time of peace. That is, until today.  
  
Gennai jerked forward and did a double take as a message was displayed within the numbers:  
  
Warning: Destiny breached. Danger of demise  
  
The alarms sounded as flashing red lights spread out across the vicinity. Gennai cried out as he felt himself aging frenziedly. His hairline retreated; leaving the top of his head bald and what remained of his hair was starch white. His healthy, young skin grayed and shriveled. Once at a favorable 6 feet high, he now stood at about 4'7.  
  
"N-no. It can't be." Gennai gasped as he observed his elderly, dilapidated hands. He knew of the prophecy, which foretold the coming of the destroyer. And it would have the consequence of his aging. This was his time. He was to seek the chosen ones and train them. It's just too soon.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Tai Kamiya groaned into his pillow as his curtains were thrown apart, allowing the evil morning sun to illuminate his whole room with light. Kari giggled at her brother's discomfort, grabbed a corner of his comforter and quickly drew it back. Tai shivered as he hugged his knees to his bare chest into a fetal position.  
  
"Tai, will you get up already? It's already eleven o'clock. Besides, I'm having Carmen over to do a history project and I don't need you running around in your boxers! " Kari sniggered. Tai sat up and stretched.  
  
"Ok, ok, I'm moving." He grabbed a pair of jeans off the floor and tugged them on as Kari walked out of the room.  
  
"Aw, shit" Tai grumbled as he noticed the shirt he wanted to wear had a grass stain on it, "note to self: no more frolicking in the daisies."  
  
He threw his shirt in the washing machine along with a few other items of clothing and headed toward the bathroom to brush his teeth. It's been a year since his heart was broken by Sora when she expressed her preference in Matt. Ok, that was an exaggeration, it wasn't broken, but it still hurt nonetheless. Those days are done and gone now. Tai found comfort in his child hood friend, Shiva. She was a stubborn, eccentric, American girl who could always see the humor in a bad situation. She's inherited the title of his best friend, and seemed to be taking quite an affect in the way he behaves. He's been catching himself doing out of character things such as singing oldie songs and finding an outlandish enjoyment in harassing other people. In actuality, he's very happy for Sora and Matt. Of course he can't help but feel a little joyful over their frequent quarrels they've been having recently. Back in the kitchen, Kari was attempting to glue things onto the English poster. She ended up gluing things on herself. Just as she was trying to remove a picture of Fabio off her blouse the doorbell rang. Kari sweat dropped as she looked at her glue-covered hands.  
  
"Uh, Tai, could you get that? I'm a little busy."  
  
"Amm imm nophmm *and I'm not*?" Tai burbled as he spit out a bunch of toothpaste into the sink. Indignantly he shoved the toothbrush in his mouth and headed for the door. He yanked it open to Kari's friend Carmen standing outside with an armful of books.  
  
"OH! Hey T-t-t-aiii." A couple of books slipped out of her grasp and hit the ground as her jaw slacked slightly to the left. When she rang the doorbell she had no intention of being greeted by a half-naked, tan, lean, well-muscled god. Otherwise known as Tai with no shirt on. Wondering what was taking so long, Kari left the kitchen table and headed to the living room. There she saw her brother with no shirt on and a toothbrush in his mouth looking annoyed while Carmen stood in the doorway just, well, gaping.  
  
"You know, it's rude to stare." Tai smirked as he pulled his toothbrush out of his mouth. Carmen blushed and was thankfully saved by Kari from an awkward moment.  
  
"TAI! How many times have I told you to be completely dressed before you answer the door?!" Kari scolded as she grabbed his arm with a gluey hand and pulled him down the hall, "Now go get dressed and find something to do!"  
  
Kari returned to find Carmen inside the house putting down her stuff with a flushed face.  
  
"WOW, a shirt can sure hide a lot." Carmen remarked.  
  
"Sorry about that." Kari apologized. "He's going through an egotistic phase."  
  
"Kari?"  
  
"Yea?"  
  
"Why is Fabio's face in your boobs?"  
  
". Shut up."  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
"COOKIES!" Shiva screamed as she leaped towards the plate of steamy, chocolaty goodness. As fate would have it, they were rudely snatched away by her wiser, younger sister.  
  
"Tut, tut, not before dinner," her sister, uh, tutted.  
  
Shiva released a stream of profanities before residing in her room. She grabbed her phone and punched in her best friend's number. After waiting for a few minutes her heard the answering machine.  
  
"Jesus, why is no one around to entertain me?" She whined as she flopped down on her bed. This would be her third day of complete solitude with most of her friends off on trips. It's just the consequence of April vacation. She could always call Tai, but after her last phone bill, the last thing she needed was to make phone calls half way around the world.  
  
"God, I really need a life, or at least a hobby," she muttered. Glancing at her clock it read 9 pm. Shiva stifled a yawn as she relaxed down into her mattress and drifted off to sleep.  
  
The mottled sky indicated that it was around dusk and the penetrating howls of battle could be heard throughout the fire-ridden land. The unlit form of a teenage boy, around the age of 16, struggled against unearthly, snake- like binds. Many were wrapped tightly and effectively around his angelic wings preventing him from escaping their embrace. The rest were secured around his limbs and neck, choking him as they dragged him down into a pit of black plasma. His strangled cries were drowned by a sinister laugh that echoed mercilessly, daring anyone to spoil its moment of triumph. Staggering into the light, a dark figure dropped to its knees, clutched her chest.  
  
"No."  
  
Shiva bolted upright. That was the second time she's had that dream. Only this time she could actually tell that, whatever that weird ass creature was, it was a girl.  
  
"Damn," she murmured to herself, "I still can't see anyone's face. pain in the ass."  
  
A quick look out her window told her it was sometime early in the morning. Stumbling out of her bed, she advanced down a marble staircase to get a glass of water.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
The sounds of horns could be heard blasting from the busy London streets. Griff Spander inhaled the contaminated British air and sighed in frustration. Why did they have to move from his beloved home in Somali? Oh yes, because his father suddenly decided to become a pimp daddy. Griff just secretly decided that it was a midlife crisis thing. He just prayed to god he would never cheat on his wife when he grew up. His mom was so fed up that she packed her bags, grabbed him, and left his father in the midst of Africa. It's not that Griff didn't enjoy the city life; he just missed the freedom of running through the endless fields of dry grass and the crisp fresh air.  
  
Griff was always one to try to make the best of a situation; but no matter how much he tried to stay positive he always felt somewhat empty inside. Like he was missing one essential part of his life that led to complete happiness. This was no mystery to him. He knew he lacked friends. Even before he moved into western civilization, he had trouble-keeping friends. The only true friend he had was his online girlfriend Angela. However, one just isn't enough. He needed people he could confide in, to trust, to care for. It's not that he was unfriendly, untrusting, or downright ugly either. In fact it was quite the opposite. Griff loved people, was very trusting, and definitely was blessed with looks. But for some reason, every person he befriended got hurt. He could have sworn he was cursed. That was the special thing about Angela. He'd met her in person a few times before. And no matter how close he got to her, she always remained untouched.  
  
'I guess there are exceptions for everything' Griff thought as a small smile played across his lips.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
"Show me the profiles Ace." Gennai commanded the synthetically intelligent computer.  
  
"Of course Gennai, one moment please." the screen flickered and then whet blue. Suddenly a picture of a boy with wild, brown hair and warm, chocolate eyes appeared on the screen. Ace began to read the profile of the boy:  
  
"NAME: Taichi Kamiya; BORN: January 22, 1988; ETHNICITY: Japanese; HEIGHT: 5'6; WEIGHT: 165 lbs.; AGE: 15; ELEMENT: Fire, Keeper of Courage; GENUS: Demigod"  
  
The information was wiped form the screen with a nod of Gennai's head, and a new picture took its place. This time it was a girl with shoulder length, layered, light brown hair and honey-green eyes.  
  
"NAME: Shivakashi Woods; ETHNICITY: American; BORN: February 3, 1988; HEIGHT: 5'5; WEIGHT: 142 lbs. AGE: 15; ELEMENT: Stars, Keeper of Strength; GENUS: Half-Demon"  
  
Gennai murmured an approval and a new picture replaced the previous one. This time it was a black male, with an intense stare. He has dark eyes and his head was shaved bald.  
  
"NAME: Griffon Spander BORN: December 14, 1987; ETHNICITY: African; HEIGHT: 5'7; WEIGHT: 171 lbs. AGE: 15; ELEMENT: Earth, Keeper of Determinacy; GENUS: Druid"  
  
Last of all, was a photo was a girl, shorter than the rest of them, but looked wise beyond her years. She had clear, blue eyes and curly, blond hair that went down to about her mid back.  
  
"NAME: Angela Krutsky; BORN: June 1, 1988; ETHNICITY: Canadian; HEIGHT: 5'4; WEIGHT: 133 lbs.; AGE: 15; ELEMENT: Water, Keeper of Spirit; GENUS: Nymph"  
  
Gennai stood up, much slower than he was used to due to his newly aged body. He grinned to himself and shook his head. He shouldn't be complaining; this was nothing compared to the physical changes those kids were about to go through.  
  
"Well Ace, it's time to get to work." Gennai walked briskly to the door and then paused. With out so much as looking over his shoulder he added, "Just bring the first three for now, I'll write to their parents and explain everything." 


	2. A new life: The gathering of the chosen

Tai walked down the sunny streets of Odiaba admiring the scenery and deep in thought. Ha, yeah right. In actuality he was focused on an unsettling feeling in the back of his mind urging him to go home. He just couldn't understand it. It was like every bone in his body was trying to turn around and head back to his room; the only thing keeping him going was his stubbornness. His eyes were down cast making him unable to avoid the collision that occurred when someone walked out of the store he was passing.  
  
"Ahh! Oww"  
  
"Eh, whoops, my bad"  
  
Tai offered his hand to the red head on the ground, currently rubbing the arm that she landed on. Tai instantly recognized her as she looked up at him with a smile, accepting his offer.  
  
"Whoa! Sorry 'bout that Sora, I was attempting to think."  
  
Sora smiled with sincere understanding, "Well, then you must be in more pain than my arm. I guess I can forgive you then."  
  
"Oh aren't you clever one," Tai sneered, and then in a more gentle tone, "let me look at that arm."  
  
Sora watched Tai as he gingerly touched her elbow where it was scraped. Then he bent down and gave it a kiss. As he flashed her one of his trademark Kamiya grins he felt an overpowering sensation spread over his body screaming at him to get to him house.  
  
Attempting to make a quick depart and hiding his worry he chuckled, "There all better now! No you go home and stay in bed for three days strait. Oh! And make sure to eat lots of chicken soup, not BEEF, chicken, or we may have to remove your appendix. Just don't make any lawsuits on your way over."  
  
Sora giggled as Tai gave her a quick wave good bye and began his walk home. Smiling, she touched her arm were he kissed her and a light blush spread across her cheeks.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
The elevator dinged and the doors opened. A youth dashed down the corridor to his apartment. The feeling in the pit of his stomach grew and he quickened his speed.  
  
Kari and Carmen just finished putting their shoes on and were enjoying a couple of cold glasses of juice before they set off for T.K.'s. They were planning on going to the movies together, along with Davis. Kari set an empty glass on the table next to Carmen's.  
  
"Ready to go?"  
  
"You bet." Carmen replied smiling. It was a well-known fact that she had a huge crush on Davis. God knows why.  
  
*CRASH*  
  
"Sounds like Tai's home." Kari said apathetically as she picked up her purse and headed toward the door. Carmen blinked then followed her curiously. The two girls opened the door to find Tai lying on his back groaning with a big red mark on his face.  
  
"Hi kariiiii," Tai mumbled as he sat up.  
  
"Tai you are one in a million."  
  
Before Tai could retaliate an alarmed voice began pounding in his head.  
  
"Taichi Kamiya, go to your computer"  
  
"Huh? Did you hear that?"  
  
"Hear what?" Carmen asked from behind Kari.  
  
"Please go, you must hurry"  
  
Tai grabbed his head in annoyance, "SHUT UP!"  
  
"Are you ok Tai?" Kari questioned her brother providing him a worried look.  
  
"GET to your computer Tai, GO! NOW!"  
  
Tai sprang from the ground and darted past Kari and Carmen. He rounded the corner and bounded down his hallway strait into his room. "What the hell is going on?" Tai screamed to no one in particular. As if to answer his question, the screen on his computer swirled into a deep blue. Tai's body went rigid as the enchanting light hypnotized him. A light thudding to his left broke his gaze. Looking down he witnessed his dresser shaking back and forth, a white light protruding from the cracks of the third drawer. Cautiously taking hold of the handle, Tai slowly pulled open the draw to reveal his old digivice radiant with power. He took hold of it in his hand and noticed its fierce vibrations. His attention was once again drawn to his computer as a high-pitched wail sounded from it. The louder the noise became the more violent the digivice would shake. Tai could sense the pressure building up and let out a cry of surprise when the screen of the digivice cracked, then shattered, sprinkling his floor with glass and machinery.  
  
Tai's breath caught in his throat. How could this have happened? What good would he be to the digidestined if he had no digivice? Tai looked up just in time to see a haunting blue light explode from his computer. It broke out in limbs that wrapped themselves around Tai's body, pulling him towards the entry to the Digiworld.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Shiva face-faulted at the sound erupting from her stomach, "Whoops, must have slept through dinner again."  
  
Hopping right over to the fridge and opening the door, Shiva scanned the shelves for anything to satisfy her hunger. After finally settling on a bowl of Captain Crunch, she took a seat in front of the dying fire on the hard wood floors of her living room. She ate in silence listening to the popping of the firewood and metrical ticking of the traditional grandfather clock. Shiva smiled to herself. She loved being alone, not to be confused with being lonely. Being lonely to her was being around a lot of people with no one to talk to, which she had no problems with. What she preferred was being all by herself with everything to talk to. She never enjoyed being in the presence of people. People were judgmental and deceitful. She could never trust a human if her life depended on it; hell she couldn't even trust herself. No, what she needed was solitude. The one thing she could never get enough of.  
  
Shiva's eyes began to droop as the warmth of the fire began to lull her to sleep. Just as her body relaxed into a slouching position, an irritating humming echoed from upstairs. Shiva's eyes shot open and a common scowl was displayed on her features. Dropping her empty bowl, she stood up and strode towards the origin of the sound, which so gallingly woke her from her trance. She stopped short when she realized it was coming from her bedroom.  
  
"I know I didn't leave my alarm on." Shiva breathed as she quickened her pace to her room. She expertly made her way through the darkness, avoiding any obstacles in her path with so much ease it was as though it were broad daylight. Reaching her door at last, Shiva grasped the doorknob and marched in.  
  
There was no time to scream as the blue light entangled itself with Shiva's form and dragged her into her computer.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Griff turned from the city view and glanced around his room. There was nothing out of the ordinary about it; it had a bed, a dresser, some posters, and some clothes lying here and there. His life had been dull to the point of insanity ever since he left his home. Griff shut his window when he heard a noise from within the apartment. Griff stuck his head out of his room.  
  
"Mom?"  
  
When he got no reply he stepped out into the dimly lit hallway. He silently walked down the carpeted floors and peered at his surrounding. Nope, no mom. Once again the noise caught his attention as a shrill buzzing filled the air.  
  
"MOM? You there?" Griff called out once more, hoping to get some sign of her presence. No such luck. After being greeted with silence for a second time, Griff became anxious. His feet led him towards the office, the blare getting louder with each step. His stare became fixed on his computer. His supposedly broken computer, which was now phenomenally turned on.  
  
"Either mom became a technological genius over night, or I'm in deep shit."  
  
With that said the usual blue light sprang forth from the machinery and tangled itself around Griff, sucking him into another world.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Three seriously confused teenagers found themselves on the floor of white room. Each had their back to the other so none of them were aware of each other's presence. And each had something to day about the turn of events they'd just encountered.  
  
"Why does technology hate me?"  
  
"What the hell was that?"  
  
".Ow"  
  
All three beings became rigid as it dawned upon them that they were not alone. Tai slowly turned to find and equally confused girl and boy in front of him. The boy he didn't recognize, but the girl he sure did.  
  
"Shiva?"  
  
"Tai?"  
  
"SHIVA!"  
  
"TAI!"  
  
The two youths sprang on each other like long lost friends. This was what they were. Their embrace was broken by a light, attention-grabbing cough. The pair looked towards a dark skinned boy sitting a few feet away from all the excitement.  
  
"Since it's pretty clear you two are already friend's, I'll introduce myself. I'm Griff Spander."  
  
Tai shook the extended hand and greeted, "Hey Griff, I'm Taichi Kamiya, but you can just call me Tai."  
  
"The name's Woods. Shiva Woods." Shiva replied smoothly as she struck a pose.  
  
The three shared a small laugh as an elderly man stepped out of nowhere. The laughing ceased as their attention was directed to him.  
  
"Glad to see you're getting along, it will sure make my job easier." He smiled through closed eyes.  
  
"Who's the sketch ball?" Shiva scoffed while receiving an elbow in the ribs from Griff. Tai jump up.  
  
"Gennai! You look old. again."  
  
Gennai scowled at the remark, "So kind of you to notice! No listen up, I have no time to waste. My time is almost up; I will cease to exist within a year."  
  
Tai gasped at this statement, Griff gave the man a sympathetic look, and Shiva, as expected, didn't seem to give a shit.  
  
"Now before you say anything, let me explain. My job was to protect the digital world, with, of course, the help of the digidestined," Gennai made a gesture towards Tai, earning him a couple of questioning stares from the other two. Gennai proceeded, "But my youth can hold out no longer, and soon my body will parish. I've known this day would come for many years, which is why I've spent the last few decades putting children through decisive tests. You three have proven to be worthy of my successors. Tai, you proved your courage by taking leadership of the digidestined; the chosen children fated to prevent evil from taking over the digiworld. Griff, your determinacy to survive through the hardships of a dark curse has proven you to be worthy. Shiva, your strength was shown by your overcoming the evil that once plagued your heart."  
  
"That was all very touching and all. but I still don't get what makes us so special. I mean, we're not the only ones with these attributes, right?" Griff asked.  
  
"You three are destined to be the guardians of the digital world, because you all possess great power. With the little time I have left in this world, I will make good use of it by training you hard and showing your true forms.  
  
"TRUE FORMS?" The three of them exclaimed.  
  
"Ah, yes, you see, none of you are fully human, if human at all." Gennai explained nervously.  
  
"WHAT?"  
  
"Old man, you better be explaining more than that."  
  
"I was human last time I checked"  
  
"Your physical changes will occur all in due time," Gennai continued; "Now I have everything ready. I've left a message for each of your families explaining everything. You lifestyle is simple enough. You will live in the digiworld, at piximon's mansion. You will have training sessions in the morning and afternoon, some schooling, and meals. Weekends will be free for your pleasure, unless your piss me off."  
  
"And what if we don't want to do this?" Shiva shot at him, her arms crossed indignantly.  
  
"Then I'm afraid the digital world will be in grave danger." Gennai replied gravely.  
  
"We'll I'm willing to do it." Tai announced  
  
"Count me in." Griff added.  
  
"Pshh, fine. Not like I have anything better to do." Shiva huffed.  
  
"Oh by the way, there will be someone else joining you later on." Gennai gave a knowing grin in Griff's direction, "I believe her name was, Angela Krutsky"  
  
Griff's head snapped up, hope shining in his eyes, "Angelina? She's coming? When? WHEN DAMNIT!!"  
  
Gennai laughed at the young man's excitement.  
  
"Calm down boy. She won't be arriving for a few months. Right now you should be more concerned with your own training. That goes for all of you. I now entrust you with the safekeeping of the digiworld. Now, let's go to the mansion, shall we?"  
  
A blinding light filled their vision. When the light faded what they saw took their breath away. An exotic jungle appeared to be their surrounding. Rich, green vines hung from the sturdy trees and colorful plants covered every inch of the ground except for a narrow dirt path that led up to a dazzling coliseum-like building atop a striking mountain. Just beyond that lay a restless ocean lined with warm sand at the shore. These children knew not what they were destined for. They did know they would eventually share a bond of comradeship that could never be broken.  
  
"Hey Gennai," Tai panted as he and the rest of the group made their way up the infamous flight of stairs leading to the mansion, "Do we get weekends off and stuff to visit our families?"  
  
Gennai contemplated for a moment before answering: "I suppose, since it is customary in your world, you may get weekends off from training as a break. However, returning to the real world is too much of a hassle o such a regular basis. On the other hand, you may get holidays off to visit your families IF you are doing well in your training and I approve."  
  
"Excellent."  
  
"Sounds good to me."  
  
"I'm hungry." 


	3. Settleing in: Weekends rock!

Four months later.  
  
"Oh my god" Tai froze in his spot as he looked to Shiva's face only to see the same shocked expression that he felt. The blackish brown muck had devoured their legs already and was working its way up to their waists.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Griff ran through the woods, trying to follow the origin of two, brief, screams of shock, which echoed throughout the land only moments ago. He looked strait ahead to an open area. Brushing past a few loose branches into the clearance, he covered his eyes from the burst of light that met him. Griff refocused his vision only to see, much to his amusement, Tai and Shiva, suck in a hefty puddle of mud. And that was all it took.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" Griff roared with laughter.  
  
Tai and Shiva did not look as happy as Griff about the situation. They struggled to be free from the muck's thick grasp when suddenly.  
  
"MY SHOES!!!" Shiva exclaimed, her voice echoing throughout the area.  
  
"Your what?" Tai inquired.  
  
"My shoes!"  
  
"What about them?"  
  
"They're gone!!!"  
  
"Where?"  
  
"I mean they're not on my feet, as in, they're somewhere in the mud!!"  
  
"Awww, you gotta be kidding' me!"  
  
Tai sludged through the sewage over to a frantic Shiva to help her find her shoes. But he never made it to her.  
  
"AHHHHHHHH!!!!" Tai cried in anguish.  
  
Shiva looked up from her bent over position, hands still in the mud. "What?"  
  
"My shoes."  
  
"Aaiiee"  
  
By now Griff couldn't keep himself upright. He was rendered powerlessly onto the ground, clutching his sides painfully from his incessant laughter.  
  
"You guys are sad!" Griff wheezed as he continued laughing. His laughter was cut short as a muddy shoe came flying out of nowhere and bonked him on the head.  
  
"Hey! I found a shoe!"  
  
"Uh, that was my shoe..."  
  
"Oops, sorry."  
  
"Aright, alright, I'll go get Gennai." Griff angrily wiped the mud from the side of his face where the shoe hit.  
  
"And hurry," Tai called after the retreating back of Griff, "I think Shiva's going Titanic on us! Her boobs are weighing her down! HAHA-*SMACK* ow."  
  
"Wish I could say the same to your balls!"  
  
"That was cold."  
  
Shiva sighed and the continued raking the mud for their shoes. After about ten, long, grueling minutes, they retrieved two shoes, one of Tai's (which was thrown at Griff) and one of Shiva's, and were now tugging at another one about three feet into the mud. Without warning, Tai stopped yanking at the shoes and started taking off his shirt.  
  
"What the hell are you doing?" Shiva asked, with lots of dirty thoughts going through her head at the same time.  
  
Tai just flashed her a pearly white smile.  
  
"I take it there's a reason for this sinful act of stripping?"  
  
Tai laughed as he illuminated his actions, "Well, I figure it's too hot right now and the clothing is just slowing us down."  
  
"Oh, so I should take off my shirt too?"  
  
"I wouldn't complain"  
  
"In your dreams."  
  
They went back to digging in the mud after removing their socks and any other articles of clothing or accessories, besides their pants and Shiva's shirt, and throwing them aside.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU WON'T HELP???"  
  
Griff stood there with a look of disbelief lingering across his face as Gennai took another swig from his Corona.  
  
"Just what I said, I'm not helping them."  
  
"Hey! You're the one who sent them out there to find-" Griff countered.  
  
"They got stuck in that mud puddle, now it's their job to get out of it!" Gennai interrupted, "now, you can go back there if you want."  
  
"Grrrrr." Griff turned on his heel and marched back into the forest.  
  
Gennai shrugged and began to guzzle from his beloved beer bottle again.  
  
"Heh- kids."  
  
*****************************************************************   
  
Griff stormed back into the grimy area only to stop at a few muddy socks piled up on the ground. He stepped over them to find three shoes. As he walked by those he saw Tai's mud soaked shirt crumpled up by the mud "pond". Griff's unsettling thoughts for not going on farther were cut short by a voice.  
  
"Score! The last one!!"  
  
"Heads up!"  
  
This time Griff ducked in time as a shoe went zooming past his face. Glaring at Tai, who had thrown it, he became aware of something alarming.  
  
"GUYS!! I have bad news! Two!"  
  
"Yeah.?" came the response from both Shiva and Tai.  
  
"Um. first of all, Gennai won't come-"  
  
"WHAT?" Tai cried out in distress.  
  
"Why the hell not?" Shiva retorted.  
  
"He says it's your own problem," Griff replied calmly, "ALSO, you guys are half naked and pretty damn deep in there."  
  
Tai and Shiva looked down to notice the muck was working up their torsos by now.  
  
Shiva sighed, "Well, there's only one thing we can do now."  
  
The other two grew silent, waiting for her to finish. Instead Shiva just smiled and shoved Tai on his back, causing the already sullied teen to get filthier.  
  
"ACK!" Tai glared daggers into Shiva, but soon his glowering features turned playful as he walloped Shiva with a handful of mud, then smothered in into her hair for a satisfying effect.  
  
"Ok- now this gets personal"  
  
And so the infamous mud wrestle began. It was a fury of boy vs. girl; good vs. evil; pudding vs. jello.you get the point.  
  
Out of nowhere a loud rumbling was heard in the distance.  
  
All three looked up to see a bulky, dark, storm cloud progressing its way through the skies; Plunging anything it passed into darkness. Flashes of light elucidated the heavens.  
  
"Oh this is just great." Griff muttered as he withdrew from his little mud asylum in the shrubbery. "You guys. get your asses' outta there before a tree falls on you."  
  
Without hesitation, Tai and Shiva trekked their way through the mud and onto the safety of the ground. Grabbing the articles of clothing sprawled everywhere, the three of them ran through the forest as the winds picked up and small droplets began to fall from the sky.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Gennai just drowned his fifth bottle when a low grumble emerged from the heavens above.  
  
"Shit." Gennai turned to face the dark woods as the wind almost knocked him over. He could just make out three figures materialize from the forest. As they came closer he noticed Tai and Shiva were coated in mud, while Griff tagged behind just slightly drenched.  
  
"NO! No, no, and no. there is no way in hell I am letting you two come in my house like that!" Gennai reprimanded Tai and Shiva as they approached the house. All three's jaws practically hit the ground simultaneously.  
  
"You can't be serious!" Cried a bewildered Tai. Shiva murmured something in agreement.  
  
"Storm, Gennai. there's a storm coming," Griff tried to point out to Gennai, obviously on his comrades' side.  
  
"I old but I'm not blind!" Gennai grunted in his defense, "I don't care how you do it, just get cleaned and in the house before the storm reaches here." With that, Gennai turned on his heel, gathered his empty beer bottles, and entered the house leaving the three gaping teens on their own.  
  
"Well, I suppose I'll be leaving now. um. bye!" Griff ran into the house after Gennai. And the next thing they knew Shiva and Tai were standing alone, outside, caked in mud, with a storm on their heels.  
  
"Ok, don't panic, its ok, we're just gunna DIE!" Shiva ranted on, pacing back and fourth, her Italian heritage taking over her actions as she waved her arms wildly in the air, sending specks of mud in every direction. Tai stood there watching her with a bemused look on his face. As he rolled his eyes he caught sight of something on the side of the house. Something that could solve their problem.  
  
"Hose."  
  
Shiva stopped in the midst of her panic, arms dropping to her side, and tilted her head towards Tai.  
  
"Come again?"  
  
"Hose." Tai repeated, a trace of wiliness etched across his features.  
  
"You mean-"  
  
"Yup."  
  
"This could be fun."  
  
"O yeah!"  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Griff lazily flipped though the channels looking for anything but static. "God damn storm."  
  
Gennai walked through the room and looked at Griff by and his activity in amusement. "Why don't u read a book or something?"  
  
Griff looked at Gennai as though he asked him to pick his nose.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Are you mad?? I can't go around reading books! That's for people who are bored! . Really bored. really, really bored. real-"  
  
"I get it!" Gennai stopped him before his urge to throw something at him overpowered him. "Besides, what are you right now?"  
  
Griff paused for a moment, not wanting to give Gennai the satisfaction of being right, and then replied complacently, "I busy wondering how those poor children are outside, ya know, the ones you left to die!"  
  
"Hey its their own fault!" Gennai scowled, "besides, they're probably not doing anything right now but standing there waiting for the rain to rinse them off."  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Shiva shrieked as Tai squeezed the trigger full force at her back.  
  
"DUDE! My clothes are clean enough!!!" Shiva sniggered, lightly shaking her head at Tai's antics. The pair had sprayed their shoes and socks, and taking turns in helping clean each other's clothes.  
  
"Whelp, our clothes are clean. on the outside." Shiva mumbled. Tai nodded in agreement, "Right you are chick, I guess we'll just have to remove the rest of our clothes, which includes your shirt."  
  
Tai grinned, winked, and dropped his pants, leaving him in just his blue boxers. Shiva feigned a face of shock.  
  
"You have no shame do you?" Shiva queried as she began to take off her pants as well.  
  
"Well, should I be? I mean, come on, you don't get much better than this." Tai boasted as he flexed his muscles. And it was true; Tai was tan, lean, handsome, muscular, and undoubtedly well endowed ;). Not to mention owning one hell of an ass. Shiva just snorted from within her shirt as she tried to pull it over her head. Tai grinned as he watched her lithe form dance around in just black panties and a blue army bra. He secretly wished that her bra would inadvertently break while her hands and head were being held captive by her top.  
  
"Uh, you ok over there?" Tai only got another snort from Shiva as she finally freed herself form the evil fabric and threw it to the ground, emitting a string of curses along with it. In her ferocity, Shiva grabbed the hose from Tai's hands and sprayed the clothes madly as her revenge.  
  
"Well, now that our clothes are clean.SHOWER TIME!" Tai yipped.  
  
Shiva coughed slightly due to the winds picking up and the light rain beating on her face, "A shower in our underwear?"  
  
"Drastic measures call for drastic actions!"  
  
"Woooohooo!" Shiva howled.  
  
Shiva stood on the front porch step to that she could be considerably higher than Tai. Then she sprayed the hose downward, creating a shower for him. After a few seconds, Tai started to sing their favorite song, soon joined by Shiva.  
  
"War! Huh... yeah." "What is it good for?" "Absolutely-" "Nothing!" "Sing it again ya'll!!!"  
  
Neither of the two were very good singers, but both believed singing was what they did best. As Tai began took the lead roll, Shiva hopped off the step and started rinsing off his shoulders and back.  
  
"War! I despise. cause it means destruction. of innocent liiiiaaaaaaahhhh!" Tai's solo was cut short when Shiva randomly decided Tai wasn't clean enough and sprayed the hose in his boxers. Shiva burst out laughing, seeing the expression of violation on Tai's face.  
  
"Oh no you didn't!" Tai said with a menacing gleam in his chocolate eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry," Shiva, pleaded, "I couldn't help it! It was a feminine urge!"  
  
But before she had any time to defend herself, Tai snapped her bra (A/N: which was inspired by Kuby.) just for kicks, causing her to yelp in pain. Shiva grabbed for the hose. Once in her hand, she squeezed the nozzle, soaking Tai. Tai backed off for a moment, and then attempted to snatch the hose from her grasp. Fortunately for him he did manage to grab a hold of it. But as expected, Shiva didn't let go. Each struggled to gain control of the water source; knocking each other away with their elbows and tripping each other. Everything surrounding them was soaked, not only from the hose, but the storm was just about on top of them. The now heavy rains pelted down on them as they wrestled for the authority of the hose.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
The clocked ticked away in the silent house. In the corner of the room, sitting his is favorite, worn-out, burgundy recliner; Gennai sighed and folded up the newspaper. He walked into the kitchen where Griff had his head stuck in the fridge, groping around for something decent to eat. An evil grin came to Gennai's face. Rolling up his newspaper, he inched closer and closer to the unfortunate, oblivious boy. Just behind him, Gennai slowly raised the newspaper above his head when-  
  
"AAIIEE!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA"  
  
Griff jumped back from the refrigerator, smacking Gennai in the face by accident. Griff turned to see Gennai gruffly rubbing his sore face, "uh. oops?"  
  
Gennai bestowed one last fierce gaze at Griff and then turned his attention to the laughter that was going on outside. "What the hell are they doing?"  
  
Griff gave him one of those 'do you really want my opinion' looks.  
  
Gennai rolled his eyes and headed for the side door. Outside, along with the laughter, a raging storm could be heard. He twisted the knob and took one step into the brutal outdoors before he was hit full force in the face by water.  
  
Both Tai and Shiva froze, immediately dropping the hose. Gennai stood before them, half soaked, with a glare that could wet Satan. Griff's maddening laughter could be heard from inside the house. They were just about to explain when Gennai put his hand up to silence them.  
  
"I DON'T CARE! Just get inside now."  
  
Gathering their soaked clothes, Shiva and Tai ran past Gennai, giggling like crazy into the house. 


	4. The new Arriaval: ANGELA and chinese foo...

"Where. ARE MY PAPAYAS???" The windows rattled, vibrating the crisp air of an eight AM Saturday morning, as Gennai's voice rang throughout the house. Groans of extreme annoyance were heard in random parts of the residence. Most likely because it was a weekend and was one of the few mornings they were allowed to sleep in.  
  
Tai's sleepy voice streamed through the boy's bedroom door, "We don't care where the hell you're papayas are Gennai; try again in two hours. at least"  
  
"How can I survive a day of constant teenage discipline if I can't have my papaya's?" Gennai pouted to himself.  
  
"You won't."  
  
Gennai looked up to see a disgruntled Shiva; hair disarray, wrinkled pajamas, and one pissed off look on her face.  
  
"So this is what you look like without 'beauty sleep'?  
  
"Get ready to DIE OLD MAN!!!" Shiva lunged at Gennai, knocking the elder off his chair. Gennai shoved her off him before she could slug him. Shiva jumped to her feet and slowly made her way toward Gennai.  
  
"All I wanted was my papaya's," whimpered Gennai as he backed away from the intimidating girl.  
  
"You want you're papaya's? I'LL GIVE YOU YOU'RE DAMN PAPAYA'S!" Shiva whipped out two papayas from her pajamas.  
  
"HEY! Where'd you get those! . And where were you keeping them? OW! AHHH!" The old chap scampered for his life as he was pelted with papayas.  
  
"MWAHAHA! That's right run! Run while you're legs still function!" Shiva cackled as she ran after Gennai down the hall.  
  
*****************************************************************   
  
Tai just stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. He stopped short as he made his way down the corridor. Heading towards at him was a terrified Gennai, closely followed by Shiva. He couldn't help but notice unsystematic papaya's bouncing off the walls. Much to his misfortune, Tai didn't make it out of the way in time. Gennai dove behind him, using him as protection from the insane adolescent.  
  
"Save me!" Gennai cried, grabbing for Tai's towel and ripping it off. Tai's face flushed with embarrassment.  
  
"Ahhh! GET OFF ME!!!" Tai scrambled to pull the towel back up, but Gennai wouldn't let go out of fear of Shiva. Tai did as best he could to cover himself (which of course would be hard for him *wiggles eyebrows*) as he ran down the hall toward his room. Shiva just stood there for a moment, eyes wide in bewilderment.  
  
"Ow ~ow~ It's the crack of dawn!" She called after his retreating khooli.  
  
"What the diploid?" Griff came out of the boy's bedroom in a bathrobe, "What the hell happened?"  
  
"Please don't tell me you slept through that whole thing."  
  
"I was just throwing some fruit at Gennai, no biggie."  
  
"It was a lot more serious than that! It was a run by papayaing!"  
  
"Wimp.what's a diploid?"  
  
Griff rolled his eyes. "Forget it. No matter what you idiots do, you won't ruin my day!" Griff started spinning around with his arms wide open, looking at the ceiling. The Sound of Music soundtrack started playing in the background.  
  
"What the hell are you doing?" Tai stood before them, full clothed now, with his arms folded across his chest.  
  
"Decided to join the land of the fully clad?" Shiva smirked.  
  
"Shut up cinderblock." Tai countered.  
  
Shiva huffed and headed toward her room to get changed. Gennai turned to Griff. "So why are you so happy?"  
  
"Don't you remember whose joining us today?" Griff questioned  
  
"The saints?" asked Tai.  
  
"My newest target! The love of my life! The girl I plan to knock up!!" Griff cried. Shiva came running around the corner, now out of her Jim jams and into some clothes.  
  
"You mean. Angela?"  
  
"Aaiiee! Yes! She will be mine!!" Griff chanted.  
  
Tai rolled his eyes, "humph, She's your online g/f who just happens to show some potential as a guardian."  
  
Griff stuck up his nose, "Just because the chick you liked blew you off for some pretty boy-"  
  
"W-what? NO! I never liked- I-I mean.uh" Tai sputtered, "grr, low blow."  
  
"O yes that chick. I forgot she's coming today, damn, I liked having my own room." Shiva whined as she subconsciously gripped the back of Tai's shirt to prevent him from attacking Griff.  
  
"Nothing last forever, besides, its breakfast time and I'm starved. Too bad I can't have my papayas." Gennai trailed off  
  
"Be silent Lord of the Fruit" Shiva snapped.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
Griff sighed with anticipation as he stared out the window. Gennai looked up from his newspaper and shook his head.  
  
"Why don't you go play video games with the others?"  
  
"And miss Angela's arrival? Stop being so. unwise."  
  
Gennai rolled his eyes. Looking down at his paper, he began to smirk. He contorted his face to a look of horror. He jumped to his feet, facing Griff.  
  
"Oh my God! It says here that there was a portal collapse. # 67! This morning! Griff that was Angela's trip! NO SURVIVORS!"  
  
"WHAT! NOOOOO!" Griff ripped the paper from Gennai's hands and began scanning it quickly. The anxiousness in his face slowly began to fade as contemplation replaced it. "Wait a minute, if that happened this morning. it wouldn't be in the paper today. GENNAI!"  
  
Gennai had long since left and could be heard laughing psychotically a few rooms down.  
  
DONG DING! Hmmm. sounds like the doorbell rang. Griff froze; he could no longer hear Gennai's psychotic laughter or the sounds of Tai beating Shiva at play station. He reached for the doorknob when suddenly the phone rang. RING RING! Shakily, he picked up the phone on the coffee table and held it to his ear.  
  
"Seven days. 'CLICK'"  
  
Griff let out a 'manly' scream and dropped the phone with a clang. CLANG! - ok! (I'm having way too much fun with the sound effects!) Someone out side started banging on the door. BANG, BANG, BANG! (Ok, I'll stop, seriously) Griff once again reached for the doorknob and slowly turned it. Suddenly the phone rang. again. Griff let go of the doorknob, totally annoyed, and picked up the phone.  
  
"WHAT?" He screamed into the receiver.  
  
"I've got two questions." and eerie voice on the other end said, "First of all. do you feel lucky?" Griff gulped.  
  
"W-what do you want?"  
  
"Second of all," the eerie voice continued, "will you open the damn door?"  
  
"EXCUSE ME?" Griff cried, all fear forgotten.  
  
"I've been waiting forever out here!"  
  
Griff threw open the door to find Angela standing there with her cell phone.  
  
"Oh my God ANGELA!" Griff glomped her, squeezing the life out of her. Then he let go of her and bonked her on the head. "Don't ever do that to me again!"  
  
"AHHH! Owies." Angela pouted.  
  
Griff rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand, leading her inside. Once inside he called to the others, "SHE'S HERE! GET DOWN HERE SHIVA AND SHOW HER TO HER ROOM!"  
  
"I REFUSE! IT'S MY ROOM! MINE!" That was Shiva's only reply before she came flying into the room, and slid on the floor smack into a wall.  
  
"*BANG* Ow! *CRASH* Damn." Shiva began to kick the remains of the vase under the table before Gennai came storming in there like a lunatic.  
  
"What was that? What was that?" His gaze went directly to Tai, who was humming to himself, sprawled on the floor.  
  
"Don't look at me king papaya, I'm just lounging."  
  
Shiva made a desperate attempt to change the subject. "Gennai! Look whose here!"  
  
To her relief Gennai's attention went to Angela, who just stood there, doing nothing.  
  
"Angela! So you've finally made it! Why doesn't Shiva take you to your room? Shiva, take her bags"  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"NOW! Hehehe."  
  
"Madcap."  
  
Shiva angrily snatched Angela's bags from her and began to stomp towards the girl's dorm. Angela followed uncertainly, afraid to anger the girl any more. When Shiva reached the bedroom, she kicked open the door, causing it to slam into the wall, denting it. SLAM (heehaw, I swear that was the last time).  
  
"Well, this is... I'm sorry, WAS my room. Now it's *sniff* o-our room. excuse me-" Shiva ran out of the room pretending to cry. Angela plunked down on one of the six beds. There were a couple windows in the room and a few dressers. There were two big closets on either side. The walls had a few posters and such on the pale blue walls.  
  
"Don't you think your being a little melodramatic?" Angela called out to the very fake cries in the hall. Suddenly things went silent. too silent. "Um, Shiva dude. AHHH!" Angela cried out as Shiva came charging into the room and tackled her to the floor.  
  
"I'm going to. to. KILL YOU!" Shiva raised her fist to hit her in the face. " Just kidding." She jumped up and finished carting in the rest of Angela's suitcases. Angela sat up.  
  
"Ok then." Angela said totally calm.  
  
"Did you just attempt to maul my girlfriend?" Griff stood in the doorway with his mouth hanging open in alarm. He ran over to Angela and jumped on her, knocking them both onto a bed. And before ya know it, they were making out.  
  
"Thank you, for making me feel so at home." Shiva said sarcastically as she turned away form the couple. Griff and Angela stopped their activity and looked at Shiva.  
  
"Then why don't you leave?" Griff shot at her.  
  
"It's my room! That's why. There are like two hundred rooms here, can't you pick a different one?" moaned Shiva.  
  
"No." Angela and Griff both sneered.  
  
"Fear not outcast! Two can play at this game." Tai bounded into the room and shoved Shiva onto a bed.  
  
"Oh it's on," Griff countered.  
  
Both sets of horny teenagers began a war of tonsil hockey. Tai's hands began to wander up Shiva's shirt as Griff moved his mouth down and started to work on a nice hickey for Angela's neck. Shiva slipped a hand down Tai's pants, causing Tai to gasp in surprise. Angela noticed this and growled before she proceeded to do the same to Griff.  
  
Both Tai and Griff jumped off before the girls could get their game on.  
  
"Ladies, ladies. don't you think you're being a tit bit. competitive?" Tai solicited.  
  
"Yes, I'm with him. Stop now before things get ugly." Griff concurred.  
  
Angela and Shiva both had some pretty skeptical looks on their faces.  
  
"Isn't it normally the guys who want the action. and the girls who have to stop them?" Angela pondered.  
  
"I believe that's true. What if they're. gay!" Shiva gasped.  
  
"My God! You may be right Shiva!"  
  
"My God! I may be right Angela!"  
  
"I just said that idiot"  
  
"WE'RE NOT GAY!" Both boys were blushing profusely.  
  
Shiva and Angela just laughed continuously at the embarrassed teens. Griff growled and started helping Angela putting some of her clothes into the closet. Angela felt slightly guilty for embarrassing her boyfriend like that and decided it would be best to change the subject. "Uh, are you two going out or something?"  
  
"US? ACK! NO!" Shiva and Tai said in union. They both stuck their tongues out. "We've just known each other a while."  
  
"So" Angela said," how long have u known each other?  
  
Shiva smiled with intent. "Oh let's just say we've been taking baths together since before you could tell we were a different sex"  
  
Tai gazed at Shiva's crotch, "what ever happened to that thing?"  
  
"I don't know it just. fell off."  
  
"Um, Shiva. that was you're umbilical cord."  
  
"DINNER TIME!!!" The four kids winced as Gennai beckoned them to come down. Their stomachs all growled simultaneously.  
  
"Food." Griff said slowly.  
  
*****************************************************************   
  
Gennai just finished setting the table by placing the last fork in its ideal position. He then put on a helmet and strapped it on securely. Next he took a rope and tied a pillow to his back, and one to his front, and strapped on some elbow pads and kneepads. Then he jumped onto a counter and firmly grasped the edges of the cabinets to hold him upright. He was ready for war. Taking in a deep breath he summoned the enemy.  
  
"DINNER TIME!"  
  
Everything went deathly silent for about seven seconds. Gennai's stare dropped to the glasses of milk on the table. The liquid rippled. Then it did it again, and again. Looking up, he noticed the crystals on the chandelier started to shake. A loud stampeding noise filled the house. The walls started to vibrate and books began to fall off shelves. Looking to his left, Gennai saw the four teens round the corner, making a mad dash toward the table. Tai was in the lead, followed closely by Griff. Shiva and Angela were right behind her, elbowing each other. This was it, the moment of truth. Tai was seconds away from reaching the kitchen. He could almost taste the orange chicken.  
  
Gennai hopped of the counter and backed up a few paces. Getting a running start, everything seemed to go in slow motion. Gennai pushed off from his run, suspended in the air for a few second. Tai's hand was reaching towards the kitchen; Griff was gripping the back of his shirt, trying to increase his chances of getting past him. Gennai hit the floor, the pillow cushioning his fall, as he began to slide, still in slow motion, across the tiled floor. Shiva was pushing Angela's face away from her as she gnawed on her wrist. Just as Gennai's sliding course intercepted the path to the dinner table, Tai just entered the kitchen. The teens were too focused on the food, and Tai tripped over Gennai. Now things sped up again. Griff was too close to Tai to stop in time and tripped over him. Shiva, who was holding the back of Griff's pants, was pulled down; she took Angela down with her since her arm was still in her mouth. Gennai made a safe slide into home, securely protected by his pillows and padding.  
  
The old man stood up, ginning like the Cheshire cat. "Don't listen to the voices in you stomachs." All he got was groans for replies.  
  
"Ow, my pancreas."  
  
"Angela, will you please stop chewing on me."  
  
"I think I broke an eye."  
  
"Wow, what a view."  
  
After about ten minutes of untangling themselves, the four sat down for some grub. It was a delicious meal of Chinese takeout. While they were enjoying their food, someone let out a huge belch. Tai began to laugh non-stop. Everyone just stared at him.  
  
"Tai was that you? Tai? Hey answer me!" Gennai glared at Tai as he reached the state of hyperventilation. "At least you could say excuse me."  
  
Tai finally controlled himself. "It wasn't me though."  
  
"It was I." Shiva smiled evenly.  
  
Gennai just about hit her. "Can we try to keep it civilized please?"  
  
The silence was once again broken by a new noise.  
  
"Safety"  
  
"GRIFF!" 


	5. Life in the coliseum: Death to Idtoboard...

It's been four months since her brother disappeared into the harsh environment of the Digiworld, leaving her and her family nothing but memories and a note. Kari was seated on a park bench reading the note that was found on their kitchen table the same day of Tai's vanishing. The note was very detailed about his where about and purpose and was personally signed by Gennai. Kari was surprised at how well their parents took the news. They argued they were just thankful that it was only one of their kids this time and not both. Kari remembered how the other digidestined took the news. Most of them were worried about Tai; some were proud; Sora even cried a little, which Kari found a bit strange after how she's hurt him in the past. Kari snapped back to reality as a shadow was shed over her tiny form.  
  
"Still no word from him?"  
  
Looking up she saw T.K.'s face gazing at the paper in her hand from over her shoulder. Kari just shook her head in response. T.K. hopped over the bench and planted himself next to her.  
  
"Don't worry about it. You know he's not in any real danger right? I mean the note said they're just gunna be training for now. I'll bet you twenty bucks he'll come and visit for Christmas."  
  
Kari smiled feeling better at his optimism.  
  
"Thanks T.K.," Kari said as she stood up, "I better get home and do my homework. See you in school tomorrow!"  
  
Kari flashed him a cute smile and began her journey home. T.K. watched her leave.  
  
"Any time Kari, any time."  
*****************************************************************  
The early morning sun peeked over the immeasurable horizon and lit up the amber sky, giving it a tranquil effect on any admirers. Gennai took a sip out of his mug of coffee and glanced at his watch. 5:35 am. Right now Griff should be somewhere out in the wilderness taking his usual morning jog down the warren of dirt paths. Out of the four he was the only one who truly knew his way around the forest; he practically had each root memorized. Even in his free time the boy could be found lounging around in a tree of some sort.  
  
Gennai almost choked on his coffee when a loud splash ruptured through the crisp air. Standing to get a better look out the window, he witnessed Angela practicing her high dives. The girl was a human fish if there ever was one. He'd never seen a human swim as fast as she did before. Gennai smiled inwardly. Their persona's suited them so well. It was obvious he made no mistakes picking this lot. Gennai walked softly down the long corridor mentally praising himself. He frowned slightly as he realized it was almost time to tell them who they were, or rather, what they were. It was not a task he was looking forward to.  
  
Gennai paused in front of a dimly lit, voluminous, wooden room and watched the activities inside. There were scented candles lit in a carefully chosen arrangement, filling the room with a soothing yet invigorating aroma. In the center of the room was Shiva. She was kneeling with her back erect, head bowed, and eyes closed. Small droplets of sweat were beginning to form on her brow. To any normal person it wouldn't have been much of a spectacle. But to Gennai's trained eyes, he could see her aura glowing energetically, increasing its power with each passing moment. Gennai grinned proudly as he watched Shiva enhance her psyche and inner strength. Her spirit was strong, he noted, almost unbreakable. He resumed his stroll down the hall and out onto the balcony. With her eyes still closed, a small smirk played on Shiva's full lips; a smirk shown when one knows they were receiving intellectual compliments.  
  
Gennai inhaled the fresh morning air as he watched the picturesque scene before him. Hundreds of feet in the air lay the roof of the commodious coliseum. There was a narrow ledge where the rising sun would hit, causing a multitude of colors to fly into one's vision. In the center of this spectrum, skillfully balancing on that ledge was the silhouette of a young man. He remained still for a moment, allowing the upcoming star to warm his body. In his hands was a sword, held at an arms length away from his body. Gennai remembered when Tai first saw that sword. He could tell the boy was instantly drawn to it as he watched him tentatively hold it for the first time. He found it rational that it was this particular sword Tai was so fascinated by. After all, if taken into account on which its original master was, it made perfect sense. Gennai focus was whipped to the present when the figure sprang into action. Swinging the sword over his head Tai spun then flipped, followed by a few lashings of the sword and a roundhouse. Gennai watched, engrossed, on the young lad before him performing extraordinary activities upon such dangerous grounds.  
  
"The children have grown strong." A voice spoke at his side.  
  
Gennai didn't need look as to tell whom the voice belonged to. "Yes, Piximon, they have. Your training as well as mine has brought them quite far."  
  
Piximon landed a hard look on Gennai, "I'm afraid that's not enough, the time has come Gennai, to tell them who they are, who they were."  
  
"I was planning to wait after the holiday, let them be with their families one last time as, you know, normal." Gennai grumbled.  
  
"You're nervous too, aren't you?"  
  
Gennai was silent for a moment before replying, "Their powers are triggered by their emotions, if they are scared or angry they can become easily corrupted."  
  
Piximon solemnly nodded with agreement.  
*****************************************************************  
Five days a week, from nine o'clock until one, it was required that the children receive an education. While most of it consisted of algebra, chemistry, and the history of the Digiworld, they sometimes found time to discuss matters of their homeland.  
  
"So, what are your thoughts on abortion?" Professoramon asked her half dead class of four.  
  
"It's wrong"  
  
"Pshh, like hell, I'm all for it."  
  
Angela's head snapped up as she shot a glare at the girl who dared to challenge her.  
  
"Every child deserves the chance to live."  
  
"They'll grow up to be whores anyways," Shiva replied lazily, "besides, the world is populated enough as it is."  
  
Professoramon grinned as she felt a debate coming on and adjusted her spectacles.  
  
"That doesn't give them the right to kill an innocent life!"  
  
"Like they'd know the difference; they aren't even born yet at the time!"  
  
"That doesn't make it right though, they never even got a chance to make any choices for themselves."  
  
"Probably all for the better; they'd end up as rapists or drug lords or something."  
  
"How can you be so heartless?" Angela scoffed.  
  
"How can you care?" Shiva shot back.  
  
Professoramon decided enough was enough and thought quickly to change the subject.  
  
"Uh, TAI! What is your view on this matter?"  
  
"Glad as hell I ain't a girl."  
  
"Amen brother, we men got it good!" Tai and Griff shared a grin and a high five as all three girls proceeded to scowl at them.  
  
"Class, let's discuss sexism."  
*************************************************************  
After their schooling ended for the day, the four headed to the kitchen in search for some grub, later to be known to civilization as lunch. But to these kids, food was food, and hunger was hunger, and they were hungry. as well as indecisive.  
  
"Easy Mac, no turkey sandwich, no had that yesterday."  
  
"How bout soup?"  
  
"Salad?"  
  
"Ice cream?"  
  
The three stared gallingly at Griff.  
  
"What? I like ice cream."  
  
Eventually they all decided on a big pile of french-fries. Gennai wandered into the kitchen to find the four, prophesized, future guardians of the Digiworld sprawled across the table covered in ketchup with random fries sticking out of their mouths.  
  
"GET YOUR LAZY ASSES OFF MY FINE WOOD TABLE!!" Gennai screeched, sending them all flying for cover. Gennai turned on his heal and strode out of the kitchen, muttering about incompetent hooligans. Four teens slowly stood from their positions on the ground chewing vigorously on their fries.  
  
"What's up with him?" Angela asked to no one in particular.  
  
The rest of the kids just shrugged and returned to their meal before Gennai's voice sounded from the halls once more, "And I want you all to practice with your Idto-boards as soon as you finish!"  
  
The guardians shared a groan as they dreaded the mortifying and painful work out they were about to endure. Within the first week that they arrived on the training grounds, Gennai presented them with metal hovercrafts in an ovular shape for fast transportation during battles and such. Because they were Insanely Difficult To Operate, the children began calling them Idto-boards. They were very fast and could fly unaided to one's advantage. Unfortunately they seemed to have minds of their own and enjoyed bucking off their operators. Nevertheless, the more the children worked with their boards, the stronger their bonds with them grew.  
  
"Well," Tai said, wiping some spare ketchup off his chin, "let's get this over with."  
*****************************************************************  
  
"And FLIP. 180. FLIP. FLIP." Piximon drilled as four kids strained against their tired bodies to keep their boards under control as they did cycles of flips and turns. Gennai watched from his usual perch on the balcony, as one would be thrown into the air while another landed gracefully on their Idto-board. It was becoming apparent that their hard work was really beginning to pay off. Soon they would be able to go out into the wilds of the Digiworld and begin real battles against minor evils. In fact, Gennai happened to have a villain already lined up for them to take out.  
  
Griff jadedly made his way across the porch; he watched his shadow lengthen in front of him with each descending motion of the sun. On his right arm hung Angela, leaning softly against his strong frame, and just a few steps behind them were Tai and Shiva. Tai would turn around every so often when he felt a light pat on his butt. The instant he would look ahead, Shiva would lean forward and give another small slap to his rear. They stopped short as Piximon popped up in front of them, brandishing his stick around happily.  
  
"Good work today guys. Gennai said he wanted to meet you in the meeting room after your training, yup yup."  
  
"Did he say about what?" Angela asked, lifting her head from Griff's shoulder.  
  
"Uh-uh!" was Piximon's only reply as his tiny white wings beat furiously to carry him out of sight.  
  
"I just want to BITE HIM!!" Shiva screeched as she made little claw like gestured with her fingers in the direction that Piximon took off too. Three elbows were thrown simultaneously into Shiva's stomach.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The meeting room was just like any other meeting room one would encounter in an average office building. It was a large room with a long wooden in the center of it, surrounded with about a dozen chairs. However, on one wall of the room was a large, state-of-the-art computer. It was artificially intelligent and could keep a record on any living organism in the Digiworld as well as important events. A large 6'x6 screen on the computer was inactive at the moment but served as a portal to other areas in the Digiworld as well as other dimensions, including the real world.  
  
The kids filed into the room and each took a seat at the table. Gennai, who was already present in the room, waited for them to settle down before proceeding with his speech.  
  
"As you all know, your job is to protect the Digiworld from evils of all kind. So I decided it's about time you get a little 'hands on' practice," the slouching forms of his audience straitened attentively in anticipation, "There's a small group of virus champion digimon called the vice-clan. They've been going about terrorizing villages claiming to be the next rulers of the Digiworld. Ace."  
  
The computer turned on obediently and displayed a picture of what looked like to be a large wart hog standing on two legs. He was covered in dark armor with metal spikes sticking out of his shoulder pads, knees and elbows. A deadly looking flail hung at his side.  
  
"This is Darkboaramon, the leader of the pack. Most of the other champions are brainwashed to follow him by his hypnotic throne attack. Once you take him out, I doubt you'll have any other problems. This is why I'm sending you out right now. And don't look at me like that, there's still a good couple of hours before dark." Gennai responded after seeing the somewhat annoyed looks of the exhausted teens.  
  
"But mom.without dinner?" Shiva asked fussily, using the title they had recently given to Gennai due to his 'maternal' attitude toward them.  
  
"Suck it up, you'll be fine. Besides, you need to be able to fight under rough conditions."  
  
"How motherly of you" Tai quipped sarcastically.  
  
"Enough chit chat, Ace, get their asses to sector H 36."  
  
Ace's screen glowed blue before the four warriors were sucked into the supercomputer.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Innocent digimon ran in all direction, screaming their prayers for help. About six or seven multifarious champions ran about throwing out attacks. On top of a verdant hill stood Darkboaramon. He shouted orders at his lackeys to leave nothing alive. Koromon watched in horror as his fellow rookie and in-training friends were mercilessly slaughtered. Dread swept through his petite body as a threatening shadow loomed over him. He shakily turned to see a menacing Snimon raise one of its bladed arms in a fatal attack. Squeezing his eyes shut, Koromon thought one final plea as the blade was brought down upon him: I wish Tai were here.  
  
When no attack came, Koromon popped one burgundy eye open to see the Snimon's arm being held up by a glorious looking sword. A young man with shining brown hair and a muscular frame gripped the hilt of the weapon. Although he could only see the back of him, Koromon knew instantly who his savior was.  
  
"TAI!"  
  
"Hey buddy," Tai growled over his shoulder, "ya all right?"  
  
"I am now, here all digivolve and help you. Koromon digivolve too. um, a tiny pink Agumon. Tai, what's going on?!"  
  
Tai threw the Snimon back with a grunt, causing the possessed champion to fall to its back with the boy's inhumanly strength. Tai took this time to face Koromon and explain a few things.  
  
"Eh, I kinda broke my digivice, well, I mean, it exploded, totally not my fault though." That was all Tai had time to say before the Snimon was back on its feet and hacking its razor-like blades wildly at Tai. "Just leave the ass kicking to me this time ok little buddy?"  
  
Koromon just nodded mutely, letting the new information register in his brain.  
  
Snimon prepared to throw a twin sickle attack at Tai, but before it had a change Tai swung his sword with an unmatched speed, severing the top half of the digimon from the bottom.  
  
"Hmm, that was almost too easy."  
  
"WOAH!" Shiva cried as a Seadramon snipped at her side for the third time. The serpent digimon continued to make many blows in her direction, all of which she dodged nimbly by prancing from side to side. Unfortunately, while she was occupied with its head, Shiva failed to notice the tail sneak up and wrap around her body. The Seadramon took this opportunity to attack the struggling girl with its sharp fangs. As luck would have it, Shiva's arms were free and she was able to catch the champion's jaws before they closed on her head.  
  
"Oh. Gawd." Shiva made a face as the Seadramon's putrid breath washed over her. "If I didn't know any better I'd think this was an attack." Unable to stand the stench any longer, Shiva forced the mouth open wider, finally snapping the jaw. The Seadramon's body instantly went limp before its data took flight, releasing the girl from its hold.  
  
Griff turned just in time to see a Monochromon charging at him. He stood his ground proudly until the beast was just inches in front of him. The Monochromon struggled to continue its charge as Griff took a hold of its horns and dug his heels into the ground to keep from being thrown back. When the pair finally came to a stop, Griff mustered his strength and threw the digimon on its side with a sharp jerk of his arms. While it lay there he quickly wrenched the horns in the opposite direction, snapping the digimon's neck. Griff panted slightly as he watched the Monochromon break down into data.  
  
Angela stood in front of Darkboaramon as he was on his way to primary village. The virus digimon stopped and glared at the defiant girl who dared to get in his way.  
  
"Going somewhere piggy?" Angela asked darkly earning a threatening growl from her foe.  
  
"You don't want to get in my way little girl."  
  
"Oh, I think I do."  
  
"Then you can DIE!" Darkboaramon charged at the blond, swinging his flail dangerously. Angela sidestepped him and then ducked as he swung around from her dodge, and tried to land a hit with his weapon. While his weight was temporarily thrown off balance, Angela jumped high in the air and landed heavily in his shoulders, knowledgeably hitting a pressure point. Darkboaramon grunted in pain from the contact and fell to one knee. Just as Angela was about to send a spinning kick into his head he yelled out an attack from his position on the ground. A shadowy vapor of poisonous gas was launched to where she was airborne. Angela gasped as realization hit her. She was still in the air and wouldn't be able to avert her momentum to land somewhere safe before the dark a cloud struck! She was roughly thrown to the ground and found a hard body was pressed against her; the very same that had knocked her out of the way of the attack. She gazed into Griff's warm brown eyes and let out an embarrassed laugh.  
  
"Bet your glad to see me." his hot breath tickled her ear. Angela giggled seductively.  
  
"Wouldn't you like to know?"  
  
Their romantic interlude was brusquely interrupted as a wail of pain brought them back to reality. Griff rolled off of his girlfriend just in time to see Darkbaoramon's data fly through the air. Tai and Shiva were vaguely breathless and shooting them both disapproving looks.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
"Well done kids, short and sweet, just like its supposed to be." Gennai congratulated the four blood-soaked teens on their victory. "You're welcome to have your dinner now, AFTER you take a shower. I don't want blood all over my kitchen!" Gennai spoke the last part slightly louder due to the protest of the hungry youths.  
  
Without farther complaint, the children traipsed out of the meeting room and traveled in path of the showers. When they first arrived at the coliseum, the kids were all somewhat shocked to find that the shower room was really one big bathroom with several showerheads. That's right, co-ed showering. The guys for some reason didn't seem as embarrassed as Shiva was at first, but that soon changed as she grew accustomed to showering with men. She was more than happy when Angela joined them, giving her some female company when it was time for bathing. Of course they did have some privacy; there were thin walls between each showering section that went about as high as the hips. Thankfully neither of the girls was very modest. Now finally in the shower room, the children began to customarily take off their clothing and just throw it in any direction that suited them.  
  
Tai pulled his blood soaked shirt over his head and tossed it over his shoulder. Just as he was working on his pant buttons he felt a sharp yank at the back of his neck. He turned to see a fuming, mostly naked Shiva with his dirty shirt on her head. Tai grinned sheepishly and tried to distance himself to avoid her wrath, but she kept a firm grip on his small ponytail. About two months after they arrived in the Digiworld, Shiva had noticed Tai's hair was only just short of reaching his shoulders when it was not spiked up. She convinced him to start pulling it back into a small, low ponytail, just leaving his bangs to their freedom. This actually proved to help keep his hair out if his face much more effectively when fighting. Tai, however, was now silently cursing himself for letting her talk him into wearing his hair like that; even though it added to his prominent good looks, she often used it to abuse him. After giving her his most apologetic look, Shiva gave in and reluctantly let go of his hair. She'd let him off the hook this time, but next time he wouldn't be so lucky.  
  
By now Angela and Griff were already under the soothing waterfall of warm water and occupying themselves with removing the blood and grime off their drained bodies. Soon joined by Tai and Shiva, the four started having a delightful conversation; acting as though it was perfectly normal to shower everyday with groups of people.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Christmas break was finally here and not one of the guardians could sit still while Gennai droned on to them in the meeting room. He was explaining to them about how some physical changes may begin to occur to their bodies while they were away. In their anxiety none of them really paid any attention when he explained what to do if anything should happen. Legs were bouncing with anticipation as Gennai finished his speech.  
  
"Okay, now who's ready for a vacation?" Gennai found himself on the ground as four sets of legs trampled over him in desperation to reach Ace. By the time the old man finally picked him self off the floor Ace was already firing up the portal to the real world.  
  
"I hope you continue to exercise! And don't over eat! We need you to stay in top condition. Remember, your body is a temple!" Gennai realized that he was shouting to an empty. Well, almost empty.  
  
"Thank you for your concern Gennai, but I do not believe I can alter my appearance" came Ace's mechanical reply.  
  
"Don't make me kick you"  
  
Four bodies were suspended in the air and moving at a considerable speed down a tunnel of data. Griff found his body being pulled to the left down a separate vessel.  
  
"London here I come! Lata fellas!"  
  
"Bye you guys! Have a great vacation! See you in a weeeeeeeeeeeeeeek" Angela shrieked in delight as her body was thrown upwards into an overhead channel. This left Tai and Shiva alone for a few more seconds before a junction was visible up ahead.  
  
"Hey Tai, I doubt my family will be home very much, so do ya think I might be able to stop by near the end of vacation and stay with you?"  
  
"Hell, ya! I can't remember the last time you came to visit me!"  
  
Shiva was only able to smile in respond before they were both yanked apart in separate directions. 


	6. Christmas Vacation: Tai's a daddy?

Tai stood in the middle of his bedroom, or, at least, he thought it was his bedroom.  
  
"It's. clean"  
  
It was true. There were no more piles of dirty clothes on the floor; no more week old apple cores strewn about; no more crumpled papers littering his desk. Hell, even his bed was made. The only conclusion that he could possibly draw from this spectacle was either his family cleaned it for him while he was gone, or he was in the wrong house. The latter was proven wrong when his sister burst through the door. She may have noticed Tai if she wasn't sucking face with a certain blonde-haired, blue-eyed athlete. The two juveniles were oblivious to the young man as they made their way to the bed without breaking the kiss. It wasn't until T.K.'s hand began to travel up Kari's shirt when Tai distressingly decided it was time to make his presence known.  
  
A loud clearing of the throat shocked both kids from their activities and brought their attention to the figure in the room. Before them stood a handsome young man that neither of them recognized at first. His russet, brown hair was pulled into a short ponytail at the base of his neck and he stood a little over 5'7. He wore a white wife-beater, flattering a well- defined chest, with a light blue, button down t-shirt left open over it. He also wore a pair of baggy denim jeans that draped over brown work boots. The couple sprang from the bed and backed away from the invader.  
  
"Who the hell are you and how did you get in here?" T.K. barked angrily, moving in front of a shocked Kari. Tai scowled at his rudeness.  
  
"What gives you the right to talk to me like that when you're making out with MY sister on MY bed?"  
  
After that was said a loud 'OoF' could be heard, followed by another 'OoF' and a 'squeal'. T.K. pulled himself off the ground where Kari had knocked him down from behind. Currently on the floor was Tai, with Kari squeezing the life out of him.  
  
"Wow, Kar," Tai wheezed after getting the wind knocked out of him, "You should join powder puff."  
  
Kari reluctantly pulled herself off Tai and stood up, never letting the smile leave her face. "Oh, Tai! I missed you so much! We were so worried! I knew you'd come back!!!"  
  
"Yeah well, I don't think I'll be leaving any time soon if that's what you do on my bed while I'm gone."  
  
Kari and T.K. both looked at the ground sheepishly, finding their socked feet extremely interesting. Tai silently laughed at their discomfort.  
  
"Well, I guess I should go explain to everyone what's been up in the digital world" Tai stated, breaking the silence.  
  
"Good idea, I'll go call the others and tell them to meet us at the Café" T.K. said heading for the door. When he reached the doorway he suddenly stopped. "Oh, and Tai, it's good to have you back."  
  
"Good to be back." Tai responded with a warm smile. As T.K. exited the room, Tai turned to Kari to ask a question that had been bugging him since he arrived. "Um, Kari, did I always have a carpet?"  
  
Kari Sighed, "Yes Tai."  
  
"Wow"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The Digidestined were all gathered at the Café, sipping on sodas and milkshakes while listening intently on Tai's explanations of what he and the other guardians were up to.  
  
"So, you, Griff, Shiva, and Angela were chosen by Gennai, to succeed him in protecting the digital world and this whole time you've been training for battle and to control your powers." Izzy summed up after Tai finished speaking.  
  
"Yup" Tai drank happily on his strawberry milkshake, oblivious to the incredulous stares he was receiving from the others.  
  
"What powers?" Joe asked quizzically.  
  
Tai paused for a moment before replying, "I'm not really sure. Gennai keeps talking about us not even being human or some crap like that. I think he mentioned something about strange stuff happening to us while we're on vacation, I don't know, I wasn't listening!"  
  
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN NOT EVEN HUMAN?" Kari cried, gripping T.K.'s arm. Tai just shrugged nonchalantly. Sora spent the entire conversation just staring at the foreigner in front of her. That's what she saw him as. It seemed like he left them as just one of her childhood friends, and returned as a man; a very attractive man. For some reason she found his hair quite appealing compared to what it used to look like. The old bushy style represented the reckless, goofy Tai that she grew up with and loved like a brother. But when she saw how different he looked she realized she almost felt something more for him, like a crush. But that couldn't be right! This was still Tai, and she was dating Matt anyways. Sora finally decided to speak for the first time that evening.  
  
"What's the point of the digidestined then if the digital world has you now?"  
  
Tai looked over at Sora and took notice that for once she wasn't sitting on Matt's lap, but a couple seats away from him instead. He dismissed it and answered, "The same purpose you had when Gennai guarded the digital world; if we fail, it's up to the digidestined. You're like our last line of defense."  
  
Sora seemed to accept this answer along with the others. The conversation was changed abruptly from tactful, to hormones.  
  
"So, this Angela chick, she sounds hot." Davis grinned. After he sulked for a couple months about Kari and T.K. hooking up, Davis moved on to checking out other girls, gaining some perverted habits on the way.  
  
"She is, but she's Griff's girl, sorry buddy" Tai chuckled. However, Davis wouldn't give up yet.  
  
"What about the American Babe, she any good?" The other digidestined groaned at Davis's persistence.  
  
"Shiva? Oh, she's hot alright, but she's a lunatic. But she's my lunatic so don't try anything when she comes over." Tai boasted, shooting Davis a possessive look.  
  
"You're going out with her?"  
  
"I'm just advising against hitting on her, she can get really nasty when people do that." Tai coated, not really answering his question. The guys just nodded their heads in approval. To Tai's disappointment, his milkshake ran out. Desperate for more strawberry-goodness, Tai made a beckoning gesture with his arm and politely called for the nearest waitress.  
  
"Hey babe! Yea you, can I get a refill? Thanks hunny." The young waitress giggled and blushed at his smile before she turned to get him another milkshake.  
  
That called for a good nine whacks to the head, with the exception of Davis, who was taking mental notes.  
  
"Honestly Tai!" Yolie scolded, however entertaining she found his outburst to be, "don't tell me they teach you to be a jerk there too? You could at least have the decency to take the time and ask her respectfully."  
  
"Sorry, its just that, back ho- I mean, at the coliseum, Gennai won't let us have milkshakes and stuff. It was an act of desperarity!" This statement received many shocked looks from the rest of the group.  
  
"NO, m-milkshakes?" Matt asked, unconsciously cradling his to his chest as if someone might try to rip it away. "The bastard!"  
  
"That's so, so cruel, and unjust!" Joe agreed. "What would possess someone to do such a thing?"  
  
"Just the 'Our body is a temple' crap" Tai mimicked Gennai with a sour expression on his face. "He says we have to be in TPC, Top Physical Condition, if we want to get anywhere with our training"  
  
"Don't worry Tai, ya look fine to me" Yolie blushed generously after realizing what she had just said. The other girls caught themselves nodding in agreement before looking away. Tai gave a confused look before glancing down at his body.  
  
"What are you talking about? I look the same."  
  
"No Tai you don't" Kari spoke out "You don't look the same, you don't act the same. For the love of dogs! I thought you were a stranger when you interrupted me and-, uh.well."  
  
"You and T.K.?" Tai helped out, feeling devious. He continued while looking directing at a suspicious Matt. "Ya know, I can't quite remember what I interrupted exactly, any guesses Matt?"  
  
"I don't like where this is going." Matt gave T.K. a warning look, as his younger sibling looked away, blushing.  
  
"I'll give you a little hint; it involves a lot of tongue, and maybe some groping too."  
  
"T.K.!" Matt cried, alarmed, angry, and proud. "What have I told you? Don't make out with girls in front of their older brothers. or fathers."  
  
"It wasn't my fault! He was just. there!"  
  
"Yea," Tai drawled sarcastically, "What the hell was I thinking, being in my room like that. I should know better when T.K. wants to use it to feel up my sister."  
  
"I'm Sorry!" T.K. whined at Tai giving him such a hard time. Everyone laughed at them, including Kari, who was suffering from blush syndrome.  
  
"Oh F***!" Cried Cody as he realized what time it was, "Sorry guys, I got to go! I'm late for my kendo practice, enjoy your stay Tai! Bye!"  
  
The boy left the silent café. The only sound that could be heard was the swinging of the door and the clanking of cups against saucers. Even other customers were shocked into silence at witnessing such verbal distress coming from a young boy. The digidestined stared at the door where the child left a moment ago, trying to grasp what just happened.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tai woke up at the crack of dawn. A few strands of light from the un- risen sun streamed through his window. However, it was not the light shining on his eyes or the chilly breeze that blew through the open window that awoke him. In fact, Tai felt anything but cold. His body was wet with sweat and his skin felt hot to the touch. Tai exited his bed and changed into some sweats, ignoring the intense heat he felt close around him. On his way out the door he checked the thermometer. 43 degrees? Tai frowned, thinking the thermometer must have broken. Despite the fact that it was winter and a light sheet of snowed covered the ground; it felt like it was at least 80!  
  
Tai shrugged it off and preceded his morning jog. He had a few milkshakes to burn off.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Christmas day couldn't have been better for Kari Kamiya. She got to hang with her brother for the last couple of days, her parents finally gave her her own cell phone for Christmas, and her loving boyfriend was going to pick her up to take her out for a romantic dinner any minute. The doorbell rang and Kari hurriedly applied the last touches on her mascara before rushing to the door. She paused for a moment to straiten herself out before opening it. Instantly her legs transformed into jelly. T.K. had combed his hair back, bringing his handsome features into play. He wore a navy, silk shirt that complimented his eyes and a pair of black slacks. He stretched out an arm to reveal a single red rose. She accepted the rose before taking his offered arm, and allowed him to lead her to the car where Matt was chauffeuring.  
  
"Kari, you look gorgeous." T.K. praised, giving Kari the one over. The burgundy dress hugged her new curves and her hair was pulled back into a French twist, leaving a few tendrils to frame her face. Kari blushed at the compliment as she let T.K. open the car door for her. Yep, life was good.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Tai, we're going out tonight and won't be home until the morning. Very late in the morning. The house better be in one piece when we come back or else-" Mrs. Kamiya finished her sentence with a fit of giggles as her husband began to kiss her neck.  
  
Tai hid a look of disgust by pretending to be engrossed with the T.V. As soon as he heard the car go roaring down the street he rushed to the telephone. After a few minutes of nodding and talking he hung up with a satisfied smile on his face. Jumping back on the couch, he snuggled down and drifted off to sleep.  
  
The disturbing blare of opera woke Tai from his slumber.  
  
"What fresh hell?" Tai drooled as he looked around wildly, falling off the couch in the process. It wasn't until he realized that he had left the T.V. on that he knew where the noise was coming from.  
  
"Who listens to this crap?" Tai rose tiredly and made his way to the television while rubbing his sore bottom. A blinking number caught his eye on the answering machine indicating that he had missed a call. He figured that it was his sister calling in late from her date; it was, as he noticed, well after one in the morning. Shrugging he proceeded to push the play button.  
  
Perhaps it was coincidence or just cruel fate that Kari walked in at that exact moment. Nonetheless, she entered just in time to hear the message from a certain American.  
  
"MR. TAI KAMIYA! I'm happy to inform you that the love of your life will be dropping by most likely tomorrow! And I hope you got some ice cream in the fridge because she also happens to be pregnant! See ya soon daddy!"  
  
Tai looked up to see Kari's mortified expression.  
  
"Oh shit"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tai pulled his hair out of its short pony tail and let his dark locks fall freely to his shoulders. Stripping himself of his boxers and T-shirt, he reached into the shower and turned on the hot water. It took almost twenty minutes to calm Kari down the previous evening and explain to her that it was all part of Shiva's sick sense of humor. Stepping into the soothing water, Tai grinned at his friend's absurdity. He let the water work its way down his body and completely wake him. Too bad his eyes were closed or he would have seen the figure standing next to him, also naked. He also would have noticed the impending hand towards his fine, bare butt.  
  
"GAHHHHHHHHHHHH"  
  
Kari dropped her spoon and looked up from her bowl of cereal. She exited the kitchen with haste and stopped in front of the bathroom door where Tai's outburst earlier emitted. She was about to ask if he was all right before Tai's voice from inside cut her off.  
  
"Have you been sucking on outlets?? What in the name of village people possessed you to do this? And how the hell did you get in here??"  
  
Next, much to the surprise of Kari, a female voice was heard.  
  
"Oh come on, you can't say that wasn't funny."  
  
"It wasn't funny"  
  
"."  
  
"Ok, maybe a little. But it was still wrong! I mean what if my parents came home, and there was a NAKED GIRL IN THE SHOWER WITH ME?"  
  
"They said they wouldn't be home until very late in the morning."  
  
"Well that's- wait a minute, how did you."  
  
"Uh."  
  
"HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN IN MY HOUSE??"  
  
"Long, enough hunny, loooong enough."  
  
".I am very upset with you"  
  
Kari back away from the door as it opened to reveal two soaking wet teenagers. Tai had a towel loosely wrapped around his waist and he was roughly grabbing the arm of a girl, also clad in a towel. Her brown hair was dripping as well and she had a wry grin on her face.  
  
"Kari, this is Shiva, the girl who I DID NOT get pregnant. Um, she's another guardian, ya know, the American one."  
  
"Oh that reminds me!" Shiva exclaimed, dropping her towel and running into Tai's room. Tai gave a helpless look in Kari's direction and followed Shiva, picking up her towel on the way. Kari blinked then headed back to her unfinished cereal. She really wasn't up for explanations.  
  
"So. what was so important that you had to moon sister?" Tai demanded dropping his towel as well and pulling on a clean pair of boxers.  
  
"Well," Shiva said, as she pulled on a pair of jeans from her suit case which lay on Tai's floor, "I've got something really great to show you, now turn around."  
  
Tai complied and waited until she gave an okay signal. After taking one look at Shiva, his jaw dropped. In front of him was a sixteen year old girl looking about nine months pregnant.  
  
"Holy SHIT! That's so great! Where'd you get that?"  
  
"Isn't it? I got it at this freaky shop in the mall. Gennai will flip!"  
  
"NICE, I call being the daddy. Wait till you see what I got planned for him."  
  
"I can only imagine. Oh yes, er, there's sort of something else I think you should know."  
  
Tai glanced up from his activity of tying his hair back, "Yea?"  
  
Shiva shifted nervously, "Well, you see, when I got home, mum and dad were kinda upset ya'know, and I got angry n' all, and dad was yellin' and stuff. Well the point is, I was wicked frustrated and the phone rang and I was so mad I just. it just. smashed into the wall."  
  
".yea."  
  
"On its own"  
  
"Oh. huh?"  
  
Shiva sighed, "Watch" She lifted her arm and lowered her head, keeping a firm gaze on Tai's alarm clock. Tai stood to the side wondering whether to take her seriously or just play along with whatever stupid stunt she was trying to pull. He opened his mouth to tell her to cut the crap but stopped when he heard a light rattling. Tai froze in shock when he saw his alarm clock shaking back and forth on its own accord. Before he could react the appliance went shooting across the room and slammed into the wall. Tai slowly faced Shiva, stun marking his face.  
  
"Wow" was all he could muster.  
  
"That's what I thought. I guess that's one of my abilities that Gennai was talking about."  
  
"Do Griff and Angela know about this?"  
  
"Actually, they've been experiencing some things too."  
  
"Like what?" came Tai's curious response.  
  
"Just yesterday Griff actually caused a small tremor, or that's how he described it any ways. He said that he got real angry at one of his friends and then everything started shakn', and now he can do it on his own. And Angela, apparently she already knew about her ability and that's why she ended up coming a couple months later than us. But any ways, just the other day she caused this geyser to just erupt in the middle of a movie theater when her brother left her there."  
  
"Yeah, cool." replied Tai, feeling a little jealous and left out that he was the only one without any "talents". Shiva seemed to sense his distress and quickly added,  
  
"Hey, I'm sure your gunna cause the most destruction out of everybody"  
  
Tai's soft smile grew. "Yea, I bet I'll get the gift of premature aging."  
  
"NO!" Shiva screamed covering her face. "I will not give into the wrinkles!"  
  
"Oh, I think you will" Tai growled as he began to tickle her. "Ya know, they say laughing causes wrinkles."  
  
"STOP! STOP! STOP!" Shiva cried in-between fits of laughter, weakly swatting at the man on top of her.  
  
"Call this revenge for the shower incident. My ass is still sore." after a few moments of torturing the lass, Tai decided to give it a rest.  
  
"I'm hungry, let's eat"  
  
"Good plan."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Not long after they finished their meal, they decided to spend the rest of their afternoon outside. On their way out the door they bumped into Tai's parents and, much to Tai's dismay, Shiva refused to take off her pregnant suit.  
  
"Why hello Mr. and Mrs. Kamiya, remember me, Shiva? I know you haven't seen me for a couple of years but I must say your son has a great body! Very well endowed if I do say so myself"  
  
Tai pushed Shiva down the hall and avoided his parents shocked stare. Mrs. Kamiya was the first to end the silence.  
  
"I'm going to be a grandmother!"  
  
"SHIVA! Those were my parents!" Tai scolded his companion once they got out of the apartment.  
  
"I know, I'm sorry! My mouth just goes off on its own."  
  
"Yea well, the next time it decides to go off on its own I'm going to knock a few teeth out of it, and I don't care if you're a girl. You can mess with people, but not my people unless I say so."  
  
"Very well," Shiva rolled her eyes. Tai took her hand in one of his and placed his other arm around her back, leading her to a park bench as if he were a loving husband taking out his pregnant wife. Shiva even walked a little slowly like she was in great care for her stomach.  
  
"So, any victims of our insanity?" Tai asked wickedly.  
  
"As a matter of fact, there's a nice couple over there, oh and that group of boys by that tree right there." Shiva pointed out the people who were giving bleak looks towards the young couple with the seemingly unborn child.  
  
"Any time you're ready."  
  
Shiva stood and began to walk calmly towards the hill admiring the scenery.  
  
"BONSAI!" She screamed as she dived head first down the hill, tumbling head over heels. Many people gasped at this, fearing for the baby's life. Tai stood atop the hill biting on his fist to keep from being overcome by laughter. Once she reached the bottom of the hill Tai rushed down to meet her. A very concerned woman beat him to her and helped the dizzy girl to her feet.  
  
"The baby! Is the baby alright?" She cried frantically. A crowd gathered around asking similar questions.  
  
"Baby, what baby?" Shiva asked stupidly, glancing down towards her stomach. She looked up and glared at the audience she attained, "Are you saying I'm so fat that I look pregnant?!?"  
  
At that statement many people backed away and went on with their own business.  
  
"How dare you!" Shiva raved on, "Of all the nerve! I have never been so insulted in my-"  
  
Shiva was cut off as Tai crept up behind her and covered her mouth, dragging her away into the woods.  
  
"Come on dear, it's time to see your nutritionist."  
  
Once in the sanctuary of the forest the pair leaned againt the trees in their mirth.  
  
"Woooooh, okay, okay, now your turn to put this on" Shiva said as she began to unhook the back of the pregnant suit and pull it off.  
  
"I am not putting that thing on" Tai chuckled, still laughing from before.  
  
"Oh come on, I've always wanted to see a pregnant man."  
  
"Shiva, you want to see a lot of things involving men. Get used to disappointment."  
  
As the two walked out of the woods laughing Shiva accidentally bumped into a large boy around their age. He had black spiky hair and dark blue eyes. He held a nasty grin on his face as he checked out the sprawled girl on the ground below him. His admiration was suddenly blocked as Tai stepped between him and Shiva.  
  
"Aw, has Kamiya got himself a little girl friend?"  
  
"Shut the fuck up Hotaka" Tai growled, not backing down from the boy's hard stare.  
  
"Don't think you can protect her from me, remember, I always get what I want." The larger boy sneered and strode past Tai, purposely knocking him with his shoulder.  
  
"Trust me," Shiva called after the bully, "I'm the last person who need to be protected. It's you who needs it! Uh, jerk!" She then turned her attention to Tai, who seemed to be shaken with anger. "Who the hell was that?"  
  
"Diran Hotaka. He's been giving me shit since the sixth grade, ever since I took over his position as captain of the soccer team."  
  
"Well, don't listen to that bastard. You can take him any day."  
  
"I know, its just, God! He makes me so, so mad!"  
  
After Tai spoke those words, the tree next to them spontaneously burst into flames. The park was quickly emptied as people began screaming and running from the spreading flames. Branches began to fall from the dying plant, landing on the ground roughly. The fire department soon arrived on the scene and began hosing down the inferno full blast. Amidst the chaos, two youths stood side by side. One of which, held a goofy smile on his face.  
  
"Told ya you'd be destructive"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The digidestined and two guardians were gathers in Tai's bedroom. The computer was on and glared readily for anyone to enter. The week of relaxation and vacation were now over and it was time for Shiva and Tai to make their way back to the digiworld. Kari sniffled as she hugged her brother.  
  
"I don't want you to go," She whined, burying her face further into his shirt. "It's too dangerous there; I don't want to be an only child!"  
  
Tai patted her head awkwardly and pulled her away from him, keeping his hands on her arms and forcing her to look him in the eye.  
  
"Kari, listen to me. I will not die. Especially after I can, well, you know." Kari nodded understandingly. Kari and Shiva were the only other people who knew about Tai's new found gift; he had decided not to tell the rest of the digidestined for fear of what they would think of him. The three of them had spent the rest of vacation trying to help him get control of his, as well as help Shiva enhance hers. Tai added with a joking tone, "Besides, if worst comes to worst, I can always launch Shiva at any one who messes with me! She'll take 'em out, one boob after the other!"  
  
"Is that so? Well I think you must feel the wrath of my boobs!"  
  
The rest of the digidestined laughed as they watched Tai jump about the bedroom and use various destined as shields while Shiva leapt at him with her chest stuck out. Finally they calmed down enough to finish their good byes.  
  
"See you later man." Matt replied coolly with a slap on the back.  
  
"It was great to see you again Tai. Oh, um, I promise I'll stay out of your room with Kari and all." came T.K.'s farewell.  
  
"A lot of people are relying on you to keep that world safe. I trust you can do it." Joe smiled approvingly.  
  
"If you ever need help, you can always email me." said Izzy, who had actually left his laptop at home.  
  
"I wish I could help out, but good luck anyways." Yolie sighed.  
  
"Wow, I'd like to know more about this whole guardian situation the next time you come back." Cody stated with interest.  
  
". Please be careful." Sora looked longingly at Tai for a moment before averting her gaze to the ground. Davis, who had been missing for the past few minutes, returned to the room with a large package.  
  
"Tai, this came in the mail for you." Davis said with uncertainty. Tai's face lit up like a child at Christmas. He snatched the package out of Davis's hands and began to drag Shiva by the arm towards the computer.  
  
"Well, it's been real, till next time! Bye you guys! Oh, and Kari, the next time I come home you better not be in my bed!" The digidestined were suddenly blinded by a flash of light. When their vision returned Tai and Shiva had left the premises.  
  
"Hey, Kar," T.K. wiggled his eyes suggestively, "He said nothing about your parent's bed."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Angela and Griff sprang upon each other like two rabbits in mating season.  
  
Gennai winced, "Great to have you back, NOW TAKE IT SOMEWHERE ELSE!"  
  
The pair did not seem fazed by the elder's outburst but obeyed anyways by moving along out of the room, never breaking their kiss. Gennai rolled his eyes and waited eagerly as Ace made another high pitched noise, indicating that the rest of the crew was returning from their vacation. Gennai was thinking of new routines to get them back into shape when he noticed what was standing in front of him. Tai grinned casually and attempted to place his hands on his wide hips.  
  
"W-wha-what happened to you?" Gennai stammered. Before him was the same child of courage, only looking about three hundred pounds over weight.  
  
"Well, ya' know those holiday treats are a real bitch. Besides, I'll need my strength if I'm going to be taking care of my kid." Tai leisurely draped an arm across Shiva's shoulder. This was the first time Gennai noticed the young pregnant girl standing next Tai.  
  
Gennai was at a loss. "You two, you actually. and now your.oh my God," He paused a moment to let everything sink in before he let his temper get the best of him. His face turned scarlet with revulsion and anger.  
  
"HOW COULD YOU TWO DO THIS TO ME? WE NEED YOU TO BE SAVING THE DIGITAL WORLD, NOT SLEEPING AROUND AND LAZING ABOUT!!!! WHY I-" Gennai stopped ranting when he noticed the two pranksters were rolling on their backs wiping tears of laughter from their faces.  
  
"Honestly Gennai," Shiva wheezed, "Tai must have some super sperm if I'm already this far along in a week."  
  
"And no one could get this fat in a few days, believe me, I've tried" Tai added, still on the ground laughing.  
  
"But how did you." Both of them lifted up their shirts to reveal soft patting, one of which was a pregnancy suit, and the other, a fat suit. Gennai scolded himself for falling for one of their scams.  
  
"Well, now that you've had a good laugh for the day, why don't you go give your Idto-boards a work-out? I'm sure they've missed you terribly." Gennai sternly pointed towards the door, enjoying their groans of disappointment.  
  
"Come on Gennai, have a heart."  
  
"Heart this." And with that, Gennai gave them the bird. 


	7. Explainations: Freaks of nature united!

Disclaimer: Yeah, I'm a dope, forgot one of these. Well I don't own digimon, or Tai, or Gennai while I'm at it. If I did my life would be a hell of a lot more entertaining. Thanks for the review so far! They keep me writing this. Now on with the lunacy.  
  
*****************************************************************  
  
"I think I speak for us all when I say explain." Angela stooped over Gennai impatiently, along with the other three guardians, waiting for his justification as to why they were suddenly freaks of nature.  
  
Gennai pulled at his collar nervously wracking his brain for the right choice of words. He didn't want to further frustrate the children due to their newfound abilities. Then again, he mused, he shouldn't go too easy on them either, for they were, after all, supposed to be able to handle anything. Gennai decided to give it to them strait.  
  
"You freaks aren't human." Gennai smacked himself in the forehead for his poor wording. He avoided their irritated looks and tried to rehabilitate his speech. "What I mean is, well, I guess I'll start from the beginning. Tai, remember how I mentioned there were five original digidestined, before you first came to the digital world?" Tai nodded mutely before Gennai continued, "Well, they were not originally humans. They were each a different mythical specie who made it their duty to protect the digital world."  
  
"Now, everything was going great until one of the five became tainted with evil. The evil soon consumed her and she abandoned the group. The group later came to know her as the 'rogue digidestined'. Making her way across the digital world, she spread terror and chaos, destroying anyone who defied her. Although the rest tried to stand up to her, one by one the other digidestined fell until there was only one left to stop the devastation. In a final battle, the rogue digidestined realized her mistakes and pleaded for forgiveness. However, that one remaining digidestined grew cold out of the loneliness that filled her heart and wouldn't hear of it. They both continued to battle despite the former evil one's desperate attempt to change things. The rogue digidestined had finally had enough of the senseless fighting and used the last of her strength to seal the other to eternal damnation, before dying herself. They fought to the death that day. One died in anger, and the other, remorse."  
  
"That's so sad." Angela grieved, cuddling up to Griff who was also attentive to the story. Shiva grumbled something inaudible which sounded something like 'useless wimps'. Gennai took a moment to clear his throat before proceeding.  
  
"The digital world was then left in ruins, way beyond repair. There was nothing we could do to save it, so we guardians set to work on creating a new digital world. The very one we are in now. After a few thousand years, in digital time that is, evil showed again in the digital world. This time in the shape of devimon, and the rest is history."  
  
"But what happened to the former world?" Tai spoke up.  
  
"Well, think about it. What other world is parallel to the digital world, as well as the real world? I'll give you a hint, your sister has gotten stuck there a few times before."  
  
Tai was still for a moment in contemplation; all the attention in the room focused on him. His eyes widened in realization before murmuring, "The dark ocean?"  
  
"Bingo."  
  
"Touching story, really Gennai it was, but what does it have to do with us?" Shiva rejoined.  
  
"I'm getting there, I'm getting there. Now, when the original digidestined died, their duty was not yet fulfilled. Because of this, they used their powers to be reborn in hopes that their reincarnations would continue their protection over the digital world. You are their reincarnations and you are now responsible for protecting this world with your powers as they had."  
  
"But why now? Why not tell me when I first came to the digital world?" Tai asked.  
  
Gennai's face instantly graved, causing Tai to almost regret what he asked.  
  
"Because we didn't need you then. You had Agumon and your villains were digimon themselves. But now I must warn you that a prophesized event is occurring. The original digidestined who had died with hate in her heart has been reborn, which has caused a chain reaction. Because of her rebirth, the rest of you were reborn also. From the moment you were conceived you're purpose was to defeat her and rescue the new digital world from her clutches before another dark ocean was created."  
  
The guardians all nodded understandingly; however, not too thrilled about being used so.  
  
"I'm still confused about this whole.. freaks of nature shit." Shiva declared while unenthusiastically causing a spoon to spin around on the table. It continued to swirl on the wood, making a dull noise as it was dragged in a circular motion before Tai firmly slapped his hand down on it for silence. Shiva stuck out her tongue at him and he retaliated with the finger, along with a small flame at the tip.  
  
"Well, this is the part that I hope you can accept. The powers you're experiencing are just a taste of what to come. From what I've seen, I can already tell which digidestined you're replacing. You also have an uncanny resemblance too them."  
  
"Taro was a demigod; a god of fire to be more precise. Tai I can tell you're his reincarnation from your control over flame. Griff, you are Keon's reincarnation. Keon was a wise druid who protected the earth. He was also a cyborg; part machine incase you don't know. Carissa was reborn as you Angela. She was a spirited nymph who used her control over water for the welfare of others, a naiad if you will. Shiva you're the reincarnation of Amara; a half-demon. She had intense psychic ability, but she often held back her true power for unknown reasons. She was half space- demon actually. A barbaric breed they were, but the human side always kept her secure. Well, to some extent anyway. Erm, anyways, I believe I've covered everything."  
  
"Not quite," proclaimed Griff, who had been the first to recover from the stun each guardian felt from Gennai's words. "Who was the fifth digidestined? The one that we're supposed to defeat?"  
  
Gennai sighed inwardly, "Her name is Moira. I recall she was a cambion. Instead of coming back in a new body, she is the very same person as she was all those eons ago. Any more questions"  
  
"Yea, what the hell is a cambion?" It mattered not who had spoken at the moment for they all shared the same thought.  
  
Gennai grinned, adding more wrinkles to his elderly face, "Well, a cambion is the half human child of a succubus or incubus; an evil being that seduces the opposite sex. However, in this particular case, Moira was not half human. Her mother was a succubus, while her father was an ice spirit. After such a mixture, one can only think of her as a seductress with the power to control snow and ice."  
  
"Watch out boys." Shiva smirked. Angela just scowled and wrapped her arms possessively around Griff.  
  
"Don't worry Shiva; she's probably a lesbian anyways. What luck for you." Tai leered.  
  
"Can't ya hear? They seduce the opposite sex." Shiva shot back, yanking on Tai's ponytail for an extra effect.  
  
"I'll bet you twenty bucks that she's a lesbian."  
  
"Twenty five and we got a deal."  
  
"I bet she's bi." Griff butted in.  
  
"I bet she kicks all your asses." Angela she replied in a subdued manner from her position on Griff's lap.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A young woman no older that seventeen leaned against the cold stone frame of a fortress' window. Her unnerving gaze pierced the lukewarm, night air; abhorrence was hidden deep the ebony irises. Long, scarlet tresses danced sporadically as the chilling wind swirled around her. Her lithe form was clad in a revealing, frost-white dress, fusing with her pale completion. It flowed past her ankles pooling on the stone floor. Two slits on the sides of her legs started at the hips and allowed her legs to move freely as needed. On the top half of the dress was very little fabric. The dress had neither a back nor straps and two strips of the cloth that ascended from the lower half of the dress covered her breasts. Unknown forces, leaving a path of milky white skin from her naval to her neck visible to any predators, held up these pieces. On her back were two demonic wings that blended in well with the dark scenario. They were medium sized, only stretching from her lower back to the top of her head when folded in.  
  
She sighed as she examined the digital world below her. Lush, life- filled, happy. She hated it with every fiber of her being. Why should they be happy when she could not? What did they do to deserve such joy? She watched covetously as a pair of electmon enjoyed a romantic walk across the valley. Her cold eyes narrowed for a moment before a sadistic and appealing thought came to her. Hiding her delight with unmatched poise, she lifted her arm gracefully, allowing her hand to lift as well and faced her palm towards the couple in a threatening manner.  
  
"Hail of Fervor."  
  
Her whisper was melodic and carried through the air on a fine note. The lovers were unaware of the danger they were in and were deleted within seconds of being pelted with deadly balls of ice. A satisfied smirk played across the villain's full, frigid lips before a voice unsettled the atmosphere, causing the glower to once again claim her lovely face.  
  
"Lady Moira, the army is mobilized and awaits your orders."  
  
"Tell them.. terrorize at will"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Shiva didn't know what was worse: the fact that her Idto-board was now out of commission, or the fact that she was dangling about sixty feet above the ground, hanging on the edge of a cliff with a few fingers. The events of the past hour reeled through her mind as her legs swung listlessly from their point in the breeze.  
  
A hoard of digimon, whom Gennai had suggested worked for Moira, had started assaulting villages just north of the coliseum. Naturally the guardians did their duty by taking out the ruffians and setting things back in order. Unfortunately, just when they thought they'd finished the last of them, a SkullGraymon appeared under obvious influence from Moira. Rather than attacking the village, as the other digimon had, it had directed is aggression at the guardians.  
  
The guardians were agile on their Idto-boards in avoiding the ultimate's attempts at landing a blow, showing off many maneuvers they'd practiced while training. The predator swung its massive tail of bones towards Griff. Anticipating the move he sprang from his board, allowing the appendage to pass in between the boy and his mechanism, and landed stylishly after a flip. The momentum of the swing threw the SkullGraymon off balance and it teetered towards Angela. She summoned a spout of water from a nearby river and blasted the virus digimon in the other direction. It roared in anguish. Red eyes seemed to blaze as it prepared for an attack.  
  
"Double Dark Shot" It howled as two missiles were shot from its back. One headed directly towards Angela. She narrowly avoided it with an escape on her Idto-board. She was not safe, however, for her assailant was still tailing her no matter how many tricks and exercises she attempted in order to shake it. Just as she felt a dull cramp materialize in her legs, she noticed the missile had slowed considerably. Looking to her right she spotted Shiva, eyes narrowed and teeth clenched in concentration. Using her psychic abilities, she was holding the missile from further tormenting her colleague. Angela gave a nod of appreciation in Shiva's direction and was sure it would have been returned if the girl had not been so preoccupied.  
  
The second missile headed for the boys, who were slightly closer to the ground than the girls were. Tai took the honors this time and held a palm toward the impending rocket. A stream of fire erupted from his hand and flew directly at its target. Upon contact the missile exploded. Tai smirked as Griff clapped him on the back, and the two boys flew off to finish with the SkullGraymon.  
  
Angela had left the missile in Shiva's hands and went to help the boys. Shiva's psyche was very undeveloped and, despite her attempts, she could fully stop the missile. It slowly inched towards her, vibrating roughly against her unseen force. The tension of being held in one spot began to build along with the energy from Shiva's telepathic power. Her eyes widened in horror when she realized almost too late what were about to happen. She had just enough time to dive from her board before the missile exploded. She was hardly far enough to miss the explosion and felt the back of her clothes rip along with patches of her skin char. She knew her board had not survived the blast since it had been much closer than she. She would worry about that later because right now her top priority was to figure out how she was going to do to stop herself from becoming a semi- human, quality Aunt Jemima pancake. As luck would have it, she was falling in a diagonal angle strait towards the side of a precipice. She hit the hard, rocky edge with great force and it took almost all her strength to not black out right then and there. She continued to roughly descend down the cliff as she tried to dig her fingers and toes into the earth. Her descent slowed to a halt, leaving her dangling halfway up the cliff, bloodied, bruised, and exhausted.  
  
So here she was on the edge of a cliff, loosing her grip, several meters away from safety. Gravity was not on her good side today. Torn fingers were unable to support her weight any further. She fell.  
  
On a lower atmosphere, the remaining guardians continued to battle with the deranged fossil. Angela and Tai were circling it, shooting various jets of fire and water, causing the beast the hiss in pain. Griff finally had enough of toying around and decided to end the conflict once and for all.  
  
"Back up you guys, lemme try something!" The young man shouted as his board lowered him to the ground. The SkullGraymon snapped its head to the grounded boy and glared at him with unblinking crimson eyes. Griff smirked before taking a three-step run and jumped into the air. While airborne, he raised a fist above his head and brought it down upon the earth as he landed. From where his fist held contact with the ground, a crack emerged in the soil. It spread as it traveled towards the SkullGraymon, creating a canyon. The digimon was not fast enough to avoid the attack as it fell helplessly into the endless gorge. Angela sped faster than thought possible on an Idto-board to her boyfriend who had collapsed after using so much energy on an attack. Tai was about to make a comment to Shiva when he realized the girl wasn't present. He made a circle with his Idto-board searching every scene that surrounded him before he spotted her plummeting at towards the ground at an alarming speed.  
  
"SHIVA!" Tai cried as he darted towards her in hopes of catching the girl. Alas, Tai was much to far away and the girl plunged into the river that lay beneath her. Tai thanked the gods that the river had been there, although it may not have mattered with her velocity. Hovering feet above the icy torrent, Tai scanned the water for any sign of survival from the girl, dread filling in the pit of his stomach. His spirits were lifted and hope replaced his doubt as he heard a loud gasp. A few feet ahead of him was Shiva's bobbing head, gasping for air after being held underwater so long by the current. He lowered himself further, enough to grab the girl's outstretched arm, and lifted her to the safety of the riverbank. As soon as she touched the ground she began to cough up water.  
  
"Idiot" Tai murmured as he rubbed her back, "You'll probably be more successful in giving me a heart attack when I'm a little older. Try again in ten years. What the hell were you doing? "  
  
Shiva lifted her head and looked at Tai. Only then did he notice how beat up she was. Scrapes and bruises covered her face as well as her head and arms. She had a large gash on her forehead and on her hip. The skin on her back had many third-degree burned which made Tai feel guilty about rubbing it before. He had a feeling she may have had a few bones broken as well from the impact she hit the water. To add to her grisly appearance, most of her clothes were shredded. Shiva gave a weak grin.  
  
"Cliffs suck."  
  
Tai was about to speak before Angela interrupted him, holding up a well-cooked Idto-board that was broken in half; held together only by a few wires.  
  
"Shives isn't this yours- oh my God!" The girl rushed to her friend's side and began to immediately examine her wounds. Griff stumbled tiredly after her, still worn out from such a powerful attack, but concerned as well. After many demands Shiva finally told them how she and her Idto-board came to the state they were in.  
  
"This is all my fault!" Angela moaned, "I should have helped you with that missile!"  
  
"It's not your fault moron!" Shiva snapped, "It's mine! I should have been strong enough to handle one fucking missile!"  
  
Tai figured Shiva didn't need to waste her energy on arguing and decided to end the conversation there. "Let's just go home you guys."  
  
The rest agreed heartedly. Angela and Griff hopped on their boards and glided evenly close to the ground in the direction of a portal. Tai lifted his best friend into his arms, holding her bridal style, as he too glided on his board towards the gateway. He looked down at the now sleeping girl for a moment. He mentally berated himself for not being there for her, for not protecting her. He may not have been the leader anymore, but he still felt it was his duty to make sure everyone was safe. Looking down once more, Tai realized she was unconsciously cradling the remains of her Idto-board in her arms.  
  
What Tai didn't realize was that he earlier referred to the coliseum as home, with the agreement of the others. Slowly but surely, their priorities were changing.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Former third-degree burns, two broken ribs, dislocated shoulder, fractured wrist." Gennai's accounts of Shiva's injuries were drowned by Tai's own thoughts. He tried to focus on the bandage he was applying to one of her gashes on her hip but he couldn't get out the overwhelming feeling of guilt. He also was a little perplexed at the whole situation. Shiva had still been conscious during the entire ordeal despite her injuries and a little afterwards. Enough to argue with them anyways. Of course now she wasn't conscious. As soon as she passed out in Tai's arms she never showed any suggestion of waking again. She now lay on a hospital bed in the infirmary room of the coliseum. Tai put the last finishing touches on the bandage and took a moment to look at the inactive girl.  
  
She had no shirt on with bandaging wound around her ribcage and chest to help her broken ribs. Her back was completely heeled from any burns thanks to Tai. If one good thing came of this, he now learned that he had the ability to heal anything fire-related, which would include burns. She had large bandages on her hip and forehead to stop the bleeding from the deep gashes she managed. Her wrist was bound in an ace-bandage for her sprain. The opposite arm was held in a sling for a dislocated shoulder, most likely received from hitting the cliff on her way down.  
  
Within ten minutes of their arrival, Griff fell fast asleep on the cool sheets of his bed. Angela, refusing to leave his side, eventually fell asleep on the same bed, nestled intimately to his body. Aside from a few scrapes and nicks where the SkullGraymon may have grazed with its claws, they were unharmed.  
  
Gennai shook his head regretfully as she watched the two from the doorframe. The guardians were to see much worse than this.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The next morning came and the three able guardians were out doing their routinely, sunup practice. Gennai frowned as he observed, noting that the guardians half-heartedly carried out their procedures. This was in all probability because of the missing fourth.  
  
Griff was making his run more interesting by having various roots and branches lash out at him, forcing him to maneuver in any way to avoid the assaults. Angela was seeing how high she could get a spout of water to carry her before she lost control of it and dove back into the refreshing pool. Gennai was about to turn his attention to Tai when he found a large message burning of flame in the ground of the training vicinity.  
  
SUCK MY MEAT  
  
Tai stood next to it, grinning like a madman and waving excitedly, obviously very proud of himself. He then turned to face the text and blew it out with one breath. Gennai scowled at his insolence. Perhaps they weren't to down about yesterday after all.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tai came bounding down the hall towards the infirmary. Their schooling had just finished for the day and he couldn't wait to see Shiva after hearing the news that she had woken up. He opened the door with his free hand and saw the girl sitting up in bed, looking particularly healthy.  
  
"I have a question." Shiva's eyes remained on the Amelia Bedelia book she was reading.  
  
"So do I," Tai replied, leaning against the doorframe with a cup of ramen in hand, "why the hell are you reading that?"  
  
Shiva chose to ignore the comment and proceeded with the question while avidly changing the page. "If Amelia is such a dope and can only cook, then why the hell do people hire her as maid instead of a cook?"  
  
"Couldn't tell ya. Brought you lunch."  
  
Shiva dropped the book and greedily snatched the offered food, shoveling it into her mouth. It was almost surprising that someone from such a refined family should possess such disregard for manners. Tai was accustomed to her hypocritical ways; she couldn't stand it when people lacked manners in her own presence. Tai did a double take when he noticed not only was her ace-bandage off her wrist, but her whole sling was missing. In fact, the only sign of medical aid was the one wrapped around her chest for broken ribs, just barely visible behind her green tank top.  
  
"Shiva, where's your bandages?" After saying this he also realized the bandage on her forehead was missing, replaced by a scar. All her scrapes were gone and she lacked most of her bruises. "Then again, where's your everything?"  
  
"Pshh, band aids are for wimps."  
  
"Shiva.."  
  
"Alright, alright, look," Shiva lifted up her wrist, spoon in hand, and twisted it around, "no more sprain. As for the cuts and shit, well.. I think healing is one of my talents."  
  
"What about your arm, I thought you dislocated it?"  
  
"I relocated it."  
  
"That's disgusting."  
  
"What? Am I drooling?"  
  
"No the arm thing."  
  
"Loser."  
  
"Freak."  
  
"Look who's talking."  
  
".. I don't want to play anymore."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Saturday afternoon arrived on a pleasant sunny day in the digital world. Instead of searching for prophesies the guardians were allowed some free time that was spent wisely; i.e. watching T.V., video games, etc. Shiva's ribs just about made a full recovery and she no longer needed any support from bandages. For about two hours Tai couch-potatoed it before he could stand the squandering of such a gorgeous day no more.  
  
"Where are you going?" Shiva's focus was still on the screen as she sensed his presence's departure.  
  
"Going for a walk. I'm gunna see what Griff likes so much about that forest, wanna join?"  
  
".. Uh .." Shiva was already zoned out on the T.V. before she finished the answer. Tai just shrugged and continued his way around the coliseum halls and outside, where the fresh air and high sun cleared his senses and warmed his skin. He set off to the north, passing the training grounds on his way, and headed into the forest.  
  
He followed a single, ample, dirt road until he reached a breaking point. From there the road broke out into several, sinuous and narrow, dirt paths. Tai had to admire Griff for actually coming out of the forest alive every morning as well as wonder how in the hell he could ever remember his way through all those. Waving it off, Tai chose a course that looked the least intricate and began to walk tranquilly through the serene woodland. As he walked, Tai rested his arms behind his head and closed his eyes in comfort. Very relaxed, he noted what a perfect day it was to take a walk.  
  
Tai's eyes abruptly flew open and his breath hitched in his throat as a sharp pain shot between his shoulder blades. He twisted and clawed at his back in a poor effort to stop the ache but the pain just intensified and spread further across his back. In a panic, Tai hastily yanked his shirt from his body and over his head, stumbling blindly off the earthy trail and into a nearby tree in the process. He slammed his back into the trunk, applying pleasure to the source of the hurt. This did nothing to ease it and Tai whimpered piteously. Unbeknown to him, his shoulder blades began to inflame and if one were to witness this event, they would see a barebacked being with two bulging lumps growing out of his back.  
  
Quickly switching positions, Tai twisted to face the tree and gripped its bark, tearing it from its place in hopes to relieve some of the stress. He arched his back and dropped his head in an attempt to stop the pain that was rapidly increasing. Beads of sweat formed on his brow while he bit back a cry from his distress. He felt his skin tear as something shot out of his back; he couldn't hold his voice any longer. He let out a strident, excruciating cry of pain before collapsing to his knees. That seemed to do it. The pain had vanished almost as startlingly as it had appeared and all that was left to remind him of the affair was a dull throbbing lingering across his back. Scraps of bark that he shred from the plant were now littered about trembling frame.  
  
Tai turned so that his back was once again facing the tree and leaned heavily against it for support. His heavy pants slowed as he realized, instead of feeling the rough bark on his bare back, he felt something soft and soothing. Craning his neck to the left, Tai's eyes widened in disbelief.  
  
"What the..?" 


	8. The Stone of Fiori: Seduction sucks!

Griff Spander and Angela Krutsky were enjoying a before-dinner nap on the soft leather couch in the closest thing to a living room the coliseum had to offer. Griff was awake at the moment, modestly smelling his girlfriend's hair as she snoozed in his arms. Smells like waterfalls. he mused.  
  
"Hey Griff," Griff raised his head towards the sound of his name, "have you seen Tai?"  
  
Griff shook his head and laid it back down on the arm of the couch. Angela reflexively snuggled in closer to his body. Shiva looked on a bit downhearted.  
  
"Well, as far as I know he went into the forest, but that was two hours ago."  
  
Griff just buried his face into the crook of Angela's neck. Shiva tip-toed up to the pair, crouched down so that she was eye level with them and whispered, "That was a subtle hint for: I need a tour guide..."  
  
When Griff gave no indication that he was going to move Shiva straitened her posture and strode out the door; but not without shooting them a dirty look.  
  
The sky was tinged with an ethereal rose hue that showed the first signs of the sun's descent. Shiva walked boldly up to the forest where Tai entered hours before and took a deep breath. Upon entering she released her mouthful of air in disbelief. Before her rest multiple paths in every which direction.  
  
"I'm can't believe I'm doing this for a man. Tai- you're lucky you're my best friend."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tai stumbled along the path almost blindly; half from shock, half from the newly added appendages on his back. He was pretty sure that he had gotten himself lost, but that was the last thing on his mind at the moment. He knew he should have been thinking about how to explain this to the other members of his home, other than he didn't know what exactly happened himself. Gennai warned them about some physical changes- but wings? Tai stumbled over another rock and fell to his knees. After a few hard breaths of frustration and confusion he lifted his head to see bits of the coliseum through the thinning trees.  
  
Relief swelled in Tai's chest and he would have leapt for joy of he weren't so wary about the wings. He quickened his pace, intent on reaching the security of the structure; where he knew answers lie to his altered physical appearance. Just as he made a beeline for the end of the forest, a body intercepted his path. The collision left the two sprawled on the ground. Shiva sat up and glared angrily at Tai. Her stomach gave a sudden jolt and any words she had planned for him disappeared from her mind as she stared at the winged man before her.  
  
Tai groaned as he landed painfully on his left wing. He looked to Shiva's rigid posture as dread crammed inside him unsure of what she thought of him now. The silence around them grew steadily unnerving.  
  
"Shiva, I know this is weird-"  
  
"COOL!"  
  
Tai was cut off, as he was glomped by the young woman. She began to feel his wings, stoking them and cooing at their softness. Tai shuddered with pleasure at her touch and came to the conclusion that he must have sensitive nerves within his feathers. He immediately grabbed her wrist to keep her from further manipulating his wings, which made Shiva quite put out.  
  
"So you like them then?"  
  
"Yes!" Shiva exclaimed, "I mean, who'd of thought you'd be the first to have any physical developments when you were the last to receive elemental ones."  
  
This was true, Tai noted, and this piece of information left him feeling more confident again. He wasn't about to admit it to anybody, but he did feel slightly hurt and jealous that the rest of the guardians could control their elements before him.  
  
"So almighty and powerful demigod," Shiva began, breaking Tai out of his momentary trance, "Can ya fly?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"AHHHHHHH"  
  
Griff jumped from the couch as the strangled cry shocked him from his doze. Unfortunately Angela was lying on top of him and was sent tumbling to the ground.  
  
"GRIFF!!!"  
  
Griff winced apologetically and helped her to her feet.  
  
"Did you hear that?" he said  
  
"Hear what?"  
  
"There was a yell or something from outside. I'm not sure but it sounded like-"  
  
"NO! DON'T PUSH- ARGGH..... owwwww"  
  
"Yes," Angela agreed, "that's definitely Tai."  
  
The two hurried outside to see that last thing they'd ever expect. On the ground lie Tai on his back in a bed of snow-white feathers. Shiva was straddling the panting boy's bare stomach looking exasperated. Neither had noticed the new company for Shiva was busy scolding Tai.  
  
"Stop whining! It's just a little extra weight! You call yourself a god?"  
  
Angela made a little coughing noise to announce their presence. Shiva's head snapped up and Tai struggled to lift his own head from the ground to see who was there. Griff raised his eyebrows accusingly, "Are we interrupting something?"  
  
"Just a flying lesson." Shiva said, oblivious to Griff's notion.  
  
"Flying lesson?" Angela repeated.  
  
Shiva grinned as she roughly pulled a bewildered Tai to his feet. Griff and Angela were stunned into silence. Felling uncomfortable with their surprise, Tai unconsciously folded his wings behind him in hopes of more concealment. The silence was broken by a piercing squeal.  
  
"They're so pretty!!"  
  
Angela rushed over and began to brush the soft white feathers with her fingers as Shiva had done before. Tai gave a small nervous laugh and bit back a moan. He quickly stepped away from Angela's reach in fear that he would start to purr.  
  
"So can ya fly?" Griff challenged, masking his own urge to pet the supple feathers as well.  
  
"Yea-"  
  
"-On his own maybe, but not with other people-"  
  
"-Come off it. I just got these things-"  
  
"-You're a god, man! Show some godlike strength!"  
  
"Fu-"  
  
"STOP!!" Angela jumped between the two bickering friends and held them apart at an arms length distance. "He'll work on carrying you later Shiva, right now I wanna see him fly."  
  
After shooting Shiva a triumphant look, Tai bent his knees and took off. The moment his feet left the ground his wings started long, powerful beats, bringing the dust on the ground to cloud around him. At first his rise was slow and rocky. As he ascended higher towards the evening sky, the wing strokes became gradually smoother and closer together. His speed increased dramatically with each commanding flap. Tai couldn't think of a time when he was happier. Not a victory against an evil digimon, not a championship soccer match, not even another crazy adventure was better than this. Every worry or responsibility that rested with Tai was instantly washed away with the refreshing waft.  
  
Shiva, Angela and Griff watched with awe as Tai soared through the clouds above them. The white wings looked majestic as they stretched to their full ten-foot span. About fifteen minutes later Tai finally descended towards the speechless group.  
  
"Was that sweet or what?" Tai yipped gleefully, flexing his wings experimentally. After another moment of astonished gaping Griff spoke up.  
  
"That's it; we're taking you to Gennai."  
  
"No need, I saw the whole thing." The four whipped around to see Gennai standing with his arms clasped behind his back and his mustache brisling with pride. "Very well done, Mr. Kamiya, very well indeed."  
  
"Thanks mum" Tai responded.  
  
"Does this mean the rest of us will be changing soon?" asked Angela hopefully. It was obvious she wanted a pair of wings as well.  
  
"Yes, very soon, and I hope you are well prepared for them. I assume I am correct in saying that was not painless." Gennai directed at Tai.  
  
Tai grimaced. He would not like to go though any more transformations in the near future if they all felt like that.  
  
"Well, something wicked cool happened to me," Shiva started, "but it's not a physical ability and it's not an elemental power either. I think it has something to do with me being a demon."  
  
"Half-demon" Tai coughed.  
  
Shiva kicked him in the shin.  
  
"What is it?" Griff asked interestedly.  
  
"I will show you!" Shiva sprinted inside the coliseum. Griff, Tai, Angela and Gennai all looked at each other bearing slightly baffled expressions before following her. They finally caught up with her in the kitchen, Gennai taking the longest due to old age, where she was brandishing a steak knife.  
  
"Whoa," Griff raised his eyebrows disapprovingly, "Shiva, no offense but I doubt this is anything good if it involves you and a knife."  
  
Tai nodded his head in agreement, "Yeah, you don't exactly have a clean record when it comes to wielding pointy objects." He unconsciously rubbed his left arm where in one battle she stabbed him with a spear just because he 'accidentally' dumped the body of an Ogremon on her leg, breaking her ankle. He heard Shiva growled something that sounded like 'you deserved it' but he couldn't be sure.  
  
"So what is it?" Angela asked impatiently.  
  
Shiva smirked, getting back on track, and before anyone could protest her actions she plunged the knife into her hand. She let out a low hiss as she pulled it back out of her, the blade dripping with dark liquid, and scrunched up her face against the pain. Immediately everyone in the room was sent into frenzy.  
  
"What the hell are you doing?!" Tai shouted, alarmed.  
  
"That's disgusting. Oh my God, that's sick." Angela was murmuring into her hands thoroughly disturbed.  
  
"Is that why you called us in here?" Griff stated, eyes wide in incredulity, "To stab yourself?"  
  
Even Gennai was looking somewhat appalled at her sudden course of action.  
  
"Don't worry- I know exactly what I'm doing." Shiva ground out while holding her bleeding hand. "Just takes a while when they go through, that's all. It has to start from the inside out."  
  
"What are you-" Tai's voice drowned away into surprise as he saw exactly what Shiva was talking about. From inside the wound on her palm, he could see the damaged muscles and tendons winding themselves back together. The blood that didn't splatter across the counter and onto the floor was sucked back into her hand as though time was reversed. Lastly the skin sealed itself back together in a matter of seconds. Not even a scar was left.  
  
"Well?" Shiva asked them, awaiting their opinion.  
  
"That was brilliant-"  
  
"-Wicked! -"  
  
"-I think I'm gunna be sick!"  
  
Tai and Griff were simply bouncing on the balls of their feet in enthusiasm. Angela gave all three of them a disgusted look before running out of the room looking positively green. Gennai smiled. Yes, he thought to himself, tomorrow would certainly prove to be just as lively.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The next morning was exciting. Especially when Angela gracefully strode into the boy's room to wake up Griff for his morning run. She became quite accustomed to this routine of waking up her boyfriend. She didn't mind either; Griff was positively adorable when he slept. She amused herself for a few more moments watching the bulge under the covers rise and fall with rhythmic breathing before approaching the bedside. Feeling especially merciless that morning, she tore the covers from his body and let the cold chill of the morning do the rest. This successfully woke up Griff, along with a few good swears, as well as achieving Angela reeling back in shock.  
  
Angela's mouth opened but no sound came out. She continued to gawk at Griff while he rubbed the sleep out of eyes.  
  
"Wha? 'Ngela wacha looking at?" Griff mumbled sleepily when he acknowledged her presence. Angela said nothing. She just started to point at him foolishly with her mouth slack. Griff became increasingly concerned with her silence. Knowing Angela was never much of a practical joker, he slid out of bed and grabbed her shoulders none too gently.  
  
"Angela, this isn't funny. What's wrong?"  
  
"You- you have... you're..." she couldn't seem to muster the rest of her words. She seemed completely distracted by something about Griff. Frowning, Griff strode over to the mirror above the dresser. At once his expression matched Angela's. His reflection showed himself, as he would have expected, with just a few modifications. Bits of his skin appeared to have transformed into metallic looking chips. He had patches of metal over his left eyebrow that the sunlight from the open window gleamed off. His new metal skin lined the right side of his jawbone and was erratically spaced going down the back of his neck, disappearing under his t-shirt shirt.  
  
"Son of a bitch, I am a cyborg." Griff mumbled to himself. Two slim arms weaved their way around his torso and Angela's reflection soon joined his from behind.  
  
"I think it's sexy."  
  
Much of the rest of the week went like this. Random guardians would discover new abilities or physical traits and then spend hours upon hours practicing or enhancing them. Angela spent a whole afternoon crying because she developed shimmering turquoise scales that covered much of her torso. She finally left her haven in the bathroom after much comforting from Griff and a threat from Tai claiming he would piss all over her bed if she didn't get out. Shiva returned from training one afternoon festooned in strange black tattoos that carried over her arms and also had three triangular black stripes that ran down her forehead and up her cheeks. In addition to Griff's cyborg appearance, he also cultivated a tremendous strength, allowing him to lift objects up to twenty times his weight.  
  
Nothing new physical happened to Tai since the wing incident. He had yet to learn how to get a shirt on, so he was forced to remain bare- chested. But this did not bother him for his sword kept him fairly busy. Tai discovered, by executing a few certain techniques and the right motivation, the sword would transform into a great blade of flame that could release an immense bout of power. Gennai explained later on to him that the sword had originally been owned by Taro, and the fact that he could master it proved he was unquestionably his reincarnation. Tai now kept his sword strapped across his back at almost all times.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"So... where's Gennai?" Angela asked carelessly. The other three occupants in the meeting room shrugged indifferently. They had been waiting for Gennai to show up and give them their 'special treat' as he so disturbingly called it.  
  
"Ang, hun, that's the fourth time you've asked that." Griff sighed.  
  
"I know, but if the man calls a meeting he should at least show up."  
  
"Amen." Tai corresponded, leaning the chair on its back two legs and swinging his feet on to the table. His wings were folded on the back of the chair as so he wouldn't crush them.  
  
"It's because he's old and senile, and - OH GOD!" Shiva jumped from her chair and placed both hands on her bottom. She began to prance around in a circle, grabbing her butt, bending slightly forward, and hopping from one foot to the next. It wasn't until her back was to Tai, during her little dance, that he noticed her hands were not on her butt, but just above it, over her tail bone.  
  
Despite this he couldn't contain his laughter at her misfortune. He wasn't the only one. Angela was stifling her polite chuckle within her hands and Griff was just outright laughing his ass off. Shiva whipped around and fixed a glare at all three of them.  
  
"You think this is funny? That really hurt. I don't know what it was but if you- hey...hello? Can you at least have the decency to pay attention when I'm bitching at you!?"  
  
Tai, along with the others, had long since stopped their laughing and were staring transfixed behind her. Shiva stood before them in a commanding pose, leaning on her hip, arms crossed, and a silvery demonic tail swishing behind her in annoyance.  
  
"Tail." Tai said quickly.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Tail," he repeated, "behind you."  
  
Shiva spun around stupidly just to see the empty doorway leading to the hall.  
  
Angela couldn't take the idiocy anymore.  
  
"You have a tail moron!"  
  
Shiva looked at her backside to find a tail protruding from her lower back that just missed reaching the floor by an inch or two. The base of hit was about a fist thick, and it waned in size as it traveled down to the arrowhead tip.  
  
"Um... well- of course I have a tail.. I'm a demon! All demons' have tails!"  
  
Tai, Angela, and Griff all sweat-dropped and smiled nervously.  
  
"Wow," Griff hissed softly so Shiva wouldn't hear him, "She's more upset about us laughing at her than her suddenly sprouting a tail. It's an evil looking one too!"  
  
Tai nodded earnestly and whispered back just as softly, "At least she's taking this whole tail thing better than I took my new wings"  
  
"Maybe she's just in shock," Angela alleged.  
  
Shiva released an un-human growl from the other side of the room.  
  
"I'm not in shock, and will you stop talking about me when I'm in the room... And my tail is not evil!" she picked up her new limb and stroked the pointy end of it.  
  
"You could hear us?" Angela asked incredulously.  
  
"I'm a demon, it's an animalistic quality we have." Shiva inflected dryly.  
  
Tai, having a one-track mind, was still focused on Shiva's tail rather than her superior hearing.  
  
"This is great! Every time you pull my hair, I can just yank your tail back! WCAGA BABY!"  
  
The room went silent.  
  
".wcaga?"  
  
"Yeah!" Tai smiled cheekily, "what comes around goes around"  
  
"Where do you pick up this shit?" Shiva asked exasperatedly.  
  
Tai gave her an annoyed look.  
  
"From you," he replied flatly.  
  
"I've never said 'wcaga'"  
  
"No, but you've said much stupider things, and I never used to say stupid things like that until I met you. 'Cause you got stupid influence."  
  
"... Tai..."  
  
"Yes, Shiva?"  
  
"You're upsetting me"  
  
"GREETINGS!" Gennai reeled into the room looking particularly happy. He was carrying a small black box in his weathered hands.  
  
"Well it took you long enough. By the time you got here, Shiva's already grew a tail." Angela practically shouted at the poor man.  
  
"I'm sorry for the delay, but I had to retrieve something that we will need in a moment." He didn't seem to care that Shiva had a tail. "Now, first off, there's been another raid that I need you to take care of," he paused for a moment as the teens started to groan, "However, with this Stone of Fiori, complements of piximon, you will be able to instantly transform into your full and natural forms." Gennai had opened the box during his brief dialogue and now held out a smooth, round stone of a swirled blue and pink color.  
  
"And we are going to use this raid as practice in our complete forms." Angela asked hesitantly.  
  
"Precisely"  
  
"Great!" Tai piped up, "How do we use it?"  
  
You will each approach the stone, put your left hand over it and recite the incantation: Nel mio honor, mostri la mia verità.  
  
"What does that mean?" Griff asked curiously.  
  
Gennai smiled, "It means: In my honor, show my truth. I believe piximon came in possession of this when he was traveling through the Northwidgrick Hemisphere. If i'm not mistaken, it's the equivolent of Italy in your world. So! Who will be first?"  
  
"ME!" Tai screamed, jumping to his feet. Gennai chucked.  
  
"Very well, very well, you know what to do."  
  
Tai followed Gennai's instruction by placing his left hand in the cold surface of the Stone of Fiori and reciting the incantation. Nothing happened. He removed his hand and looked up at Gennai in dissapointment. Just as he felt himself relaxing, the room tempurature flared, becoming unbearably hot, and all Tai saw was red.  
  
Angela, Griff, and Shiva reeled back in alarm as their friend was engulfed by a tornado of fire. After a good ten seconds the fire vanished into the ground. Tai stood, reconizably before them but with several changes. For one thing he was only wearing a pair of tight, Nubuck buffalo leather pants. On his feet were dark brown boots that straped themselves half-way up his calves. His wings and sword remained the same but his hair had grown so that it reached his mid back and it seemed to be billowing out around him as if there were a firece wind blowing. He had an assortment of small, gold, hoop earings running along the ridge of his left ear and just one in the lobe of his right. What was most shocking was his eyes. They were glowing an eerie blue and the pupils were slitted like a cat's. A whisle was heard from within the group, most likley from Shiva knowing how devoted Angela was to Griff. Tai smiled and stepped back to his friends, allowing the next guardian to go.  
  
Shiva followed the ritual and was engulf by a strange silvery substance. When it died down no one would have recognized her. She looked no where near human. Her skin was a lustery silver color and her hair and claws had turned black. She still had her tail swishing merrily behind her. She was wearing all leather as well. She had on short, tight, black leather shorts along with what looked more like a sports bra than a shirt, showing off her strange, stomach tatoos. She also had leather, fingerless gloves that traveled past her elbows and boots that reached up passed her thighs. On each thigh was a belt that had unique set of daggers fastened securely to them. Facial features were also a major modification. The ears were now pointed and her eyes had no whites in them whatsoever. They were just black orbs of oblivion, making the rest of the room wonder where she was actually looking. The last variation came to attention when she smiled at them, revealing a deadly looking set of fangs.  
  
"Bloody hell," Griff replied weakly before stepping up to the stone himself. After being swallowed up by a brief dome of stone Griff stood with his body half concealed in metal. In addition to the bits and chips running along his body, his whole left arm was completely robotic. He only had a short open vest covering his upper body and a pair of flexible, ripped, black jeans. On his feet were high-tech metal boots with certain aspects that allowed him to change his speed. He had on a military belt equipped with firearms. Griff lifted his mechanized arm and flexed his hand in wonder, watching the light bounce off his lustrous, metallic fingers. He smiled. With every movement he made came the barely audible resonance of a small power drill running.  
  
Angela was the last to go, getting caught up in a wirlwind of water. When the last droplet evaporated into the ground a full-blown nymph stood before them. She was clad in a sarong tied loosly on the side of her waist, revealing one long, slender leg and pooling on the floor. Her feet were bare. She didn't need a shirt because the shimmering torquise scales seemed to cover her torso much like a strapless one. Her skin had turned a pale, blue color. He hair had straitened from its usual blonde curls and had altered into an ashen white instead. Last of all, and most noticable were her ears, which fanned out largely from the sides of her head and appeared webbed.  
  
She stepped up to where the rest of the guardians were huddled infront of a mirror ACE projected and smiled at her reflection. Gennai clapped his hands for their attention.  
  
"As excited as I'm sure you all are, it's time for you to test yourselves to your maximum abilities"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"WHOOOOO HOOOOOO!!!" Griff cried as he threw a punch so fast it was invisible to the human eye right through a tyrannomon, destroying it.  
  
"Couldn't have put it better myself!" Shiva enthusiastically agreed. She continued slashing stomaches and sliting throats, jumping and dodging along the way, with a stamina she could have never possessed as a human.  
  
"YOU GUYS! We are not supossed to enjoy killing! This is for a good cause." But even Angela couldn't keep herself from smiling as she sent a lilac-blue mist into the eyes of an ebidramon, blinding it. A large shadow swooped across the ground infront of her and she looked up. Tai was out- flying an enraged parrotmon, taunting it along the way.  
  
"Come'on ya pidgeon! I'm half your size! Hit me!" he laughed, gliding across the air on his back and resting his arms behind his head.  
  
"Stop messing with him, and kill him already!" Shiva rebuked him from the ground.  
  
"Look who's talking!" Tai called back while the hypocrite pranced around on various digimons' heads. She was just about to snap the neck of one with her feet as she stood atop its shoulders before the ground gave a tremendous shake, knocking her backwards. Thankfully cats aren't the only ones who always land on their feet.  
  
"Sorry Sheeves!" Griff smiled apologetically.  
  
Shiva just growled at him, then at Tai, who had finished off the parrotmon and was laughing at her from his perch on a cliff. She was about to yell at him when a scream rang thoughout the region. Griff, Shiva and Tai whipped around. Bodies of defeated digimon littered the ground surrounding Angela, whose back was arched in pain. A large, jagged icicle was obtruding through her chest.  
  
"ANGELA!!!" Griff screamed as he used his advanced speed to rush to her side. He caught her body before it hit the ground, gingerly laying her head on his lap. Shiva jumped the distance and landed in a crouch next to Griff, and helped him inspect the wound. Tai remained standing after flying over and began to look around for the cause of this misfortune. Then he spotted it, standing on a ledge forty-odd feet above them looking quite pleased with herself. Their eyes locked and Tai immediately found himself lost in her intense dark gaze.  
  
"Well, it missed her heart, but it did skim her left lung. She'll live if we get her medical attention ASAP." Shiva murmured quietly over the harsh, shuddering gasps from the wounded girl.  
  
"We've got to get this icicle out of her." Griff croaked, wiping sweaty hair out of Angela's eyes. He looked up to see Tai staring off in the other direction.  
  
"TAI! Help us!" Tai took his eyes off Angela's aggressor and lowered himself to the rest of their levels.  
  
"Let me," He placed both his hands on the frozen icicle and closed his eyes in concentration. A red aura surrounded his hands and the icicle melted into nothing but water beneath his palms. Griff caught his eye and Tai could tell he was thankful for him making it as painless as possible for his girlfriend. He turned back to the cliff just to see a slim figure turn and walk away from the scene.  
  
"Griff, you take Angela back to Gennai. Shiva, you finish off the rest of these goons. I've gotta take care of someone."  
  
They both gave him a silent nod, knowing better than to question his motives when he got like this. Griff silently lifted Angela in his arms, her blood soaking his shirt. Using his computer-generated speed once more, he disappeared to the nearest gateway. Shiva looked at Tai; her pointed ears gave the impression they were drooping. She didn't seem to notice the menacing digimon that began to close in around them.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"Don't worry; you just mind these guys, and then come find me."  
  
Shiva just stared at him a moment longer with her vacant orbs before turning away and leaping at the nearest digimon. Tai was airborne the next minute, perusing his adversary.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tai landed lightly on the balls of his feet and looked defiantly down at his new opponent. So this was the infamous Moira. He couldn't deny her beauty; she was practically intoxicating with her tight fitting garb showing off her curves and red tresses falling gracefully down her pale, bare shoulders. He had almost expected her to attack him the moment he landed, but instead she remained still. In fact, the way she was gazing pensively up towards him made him wonder if she was planning on fighting him at all. The look on her face was plainly one of nostalgia.  
  
Moira almost dropped her staff. She couldn't believe that she didn't recognize him before. But after two thousand years she never thought she'd see him again. Though the sun prevented her from seeing anything but his silhouette, she knew exactly what he looked like. Silvery white wings folded behind his bare back. His katana belt was strapped diagonally across his chest, and the hilt of his sword was just visible over his right shoulder. Dark brown locks which escaped their prison within the loose, low ponytail whipped around his tanned face.  
  
"Taro" Her voice was barely above a whisper but it was clearly heard by him.  
  
"It's Tai, and you'd better get my name right if we're going to be enemies." As he said this a cloud drifted over head blocking the sun and allowing her to get a clear vision of him. Indeed it was not the man she had previously thought it had been. Though strikingly akin, this one was a little shorter, perhaps just slightly taller than she, and he also appeared to be younger. However his eyes still held the same wisdom; the same ancient look of awareness one would acquire from experiencing too much war.  
  
Moira quickly corrected her poise and fixed a glare on him. He smiled audaciously.  
  
"Well now, shall we get on with it?"  
  
These words barley escaped his mouth before a large beam of fire was hurling towards her along the ground. She swiftly held up her palm and produced a thick sheet of ice as protection. She hoped it would hold through the assault seeing how his element seemed to rule over hers. By the time the attack ended, a puddle of steaming water lay at her feet. Deciding it was time for retaliation, she straitened out her palm, shooting speeding balls of ice at the demi-god. An aura of fire surrounded him, melting all of the bullet-like ice balls before they reached him.  
  
I can't win this with elements. She thought to herself. Time to move onto weapons. She lifted her staff above her head and charged at the unsuspecting young man.  
  
Tai's eyes widened and he quickly whipped out his sword from its sheath on his back just in time to stop the staff from braking in his skull. Moira leapt back from him before charging again, this time aiming for his stomach. Metal clang against metal as Tai blocked another blow. This went on for a short time without much progress.  
  
Moira sent one more blow to his skull. This time, instead of using his sword to defend him, Tai grabbed her wrists, holding them captive above their heads. A sword and a staff clattered to the rocky earth, abandoned. Moira's expression instantly changed from indignation to shock. Her breath caught in her throat and she shivered involuntarily when she felt his warm breath tickling her treacherously exposed neck. She knew she was loosing control. She had to get out of his grasp. She had to escape those unfathomable cerulean eyes. She would not look into those eyes.  
  
Moira made a half hearted struggle against his grip but his embrace held firm. She began to panic. A couple millennia of pent up sexual frustration was about to make a grand appearance. Using her cambion heritage and seducing him was out of the question; then she'd loose control for sure. She had to do something fast or she'd be her own downfall.  
  
Keeping her eyes downcast, she decided the best course of action at the moment to try and catch him off guard and then make an escape.  
  
"Impressive, unpredictable and a lot of stamina. You'd make a great boyfriend." She purred.  
  
"I'll take your word for it." was the quick response.  
  
And then Moira made the biggest mistake of her life. She looked into his eyes. Time froze as blue and black connected. There was not a blade of grass that swayed in the wind. Everything had paused. Then, as though someone had hit the play button on a remote control, their lips collided together in a hungry, mutual kiss.  
  
Something inside of Tai felt like it had been reawakened. He was barely aware of his arms that snaked around her exposed back, ramming her tightly against his body. There was no hesitation in the kiss. Hot, pining tongues entwined as they desperately groped at each other. One of Moira's was wrapped around his neck while the other ran down his chest, over his naked stomach, and traced the line of his pants. Then, all too soon, the moment had passed. Tai opened his eyes feeling the warmth leave him. She was gone.  
  
Damn it. Tai growled in his meditation. I was seduced wasn't I? Of course she did! She's a cambion! I should have seen that coming.  
  
He bent down and picked up his sword before his sharp senses told him someone was near. He turned to see Shiva standing behind him. And she did not look happy from what he could tell. He tries interpreting the demonic eyes to no avail. Normally her human, bright green eyes would give off her emotions despite her well controlled facial expression. But now they were unreadable, cold and distant.  
  
"Shiva-" was all Tai could breath. He really didn't know what to tell her. Shiva held up a clawed hand to silence him, not needing to hear the excuse she inexplicably knew he would use.  
  
"She was holding back, during the fight, you know," she said in a detached voice. Tai felt remorseful for some reason and he didn't know why. He knew he should have been ashamed; after all, he was kissing their enemy. But guilt was one emotion he didn't expect to receive in such strong measures. Shiva turned from him and started her way towards the portal, her tail swishing behind her like a metronome.  
  
"...And she wasn't seducing you." She added before a white light from the television engulfed her, taking her back to the coliseum. 


	9. Visitors: Curse of the booty dance

A/N: I sincerely apologize for taking so damn long with this chapter. Hopefully they'll come a lot quicker in succession in the future. Thank you for those who have reviewed!  
  
Shiva stood in the center of the meeting room just after exiting ACE. She sighed, thoroughly frustrated. It wasn't like she cared who Tai kissed. So why did it bother her so much?  
  
"Stupid Tai..." she growled. Her fists clenched. A white-blue light filled the room once more and Tai went flying out of it, tumbling a few feet head-over-heels and then coming to a halt at Shiva's leather-clad feet. She just looked appraisingly down at him before turning and walking out.  
  
Slowly standing to his feet, Tai scowled after her. It was none of her business what he did. She was completely over reacting in the situation.  
  
'Fine,' he thought angrily, 'if she's going to be like that, then I'm not going to put up with her.'  
  
And so the silent battle continued throughout the week. Tai and Shiva would only cast the occasional cold glare toward one another but nothing more. This made life at the coliseum pretty dull, particularly for Gennai, with their top humorists on a silent streak. Even Griff and Angela, who, more often than not, spent their free time in each other's company, noticed the tension around the residence. Thankfully, the silence eventually ended.  
  
Late one Thursday night, after a few hard hours of training, Tai lay in his bed spread eagled, his wings folded comfortably underneath him. He was alone in the room because Griff decided to take Angela out on a date. Of course Tai didn't know where the hell he would take her for a date in the digiworld.  
  
The digiworld had become Tai's home. It was something he could no longer deny. Sure he missed his family, especially Kari, but he suddenly began to feel out of place any time he thought of moving back there. Tai broke out of his train of thought when his bed sagged under an added weight. He decided to not even acknowledge her as she curled up on one of his wings, huddling close to his body. The room was filled with an uncomfortable silence.  
  
"Look tai, I completely over reacted-"  
  
"-I don't know what I was thinking, kissing her like that-"  
  
"-It's a free world, so far. And she never even did anything to hurt you-"  
  
"-And then I just blew you off afterwards-"  
  
Silence filled the room again.  
  
"So... do you really like her like that? I mean, not that I have a problem or anything, it's cool..."  
  
"...No," Tai couldn't help but notice the relief that passed over her face, "I don't even know what happened, honestly. It was more like animal attraction."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"She's got nothing on you, ya know that right? You're a much better kisser."  
  
More silence followed after this. Shiva looked up and caught Tai's eye. Both were thrown into a strident laughter.  
  
Gennai looked up from the local paper, The Digital Download, smiling knowing everything was going back to normal. He settled back to reading the paper before dropping it on his lap in frustration. When was Moira going to give up? It was four on one, and even though the guardians were still in training, they were very promising. The most disturbing recent event was the brief interaction between Tai and Moira. He had to tell Tai the truth; the past between the fire and ice guardians before he was hurt. History was about to repeat itself and he felt helpless to stop it.  
  
A small beeping noise emitted from a smoking silver box and he stood.  
  
"They're almost ready..."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The next morning would prove to be an unusual one. For one thing Gennai was singing.  
  
"It's a world of laughter a world of tears..."  
  
The four Guardian trainees shared a pained look as their mentor, dressed in a frilly pink apron dished out scrambled eggs and cereal to each of them.  
  
"This is so sad." Shiva scoffed as she watched Gennai attempt a pirouette, and dropped some eggs in the process.  
  
Tai nodded solemnly, "Yes, I think he stole that apron from Matt."  
  
Angela snorted into her cereal.  
  
Griff ran a hand over his head in annoyance. His hair had grown since he arrived and he now had cornrows, much to the delight of his girlfriend. "I can't take this..."  
  
"It's a small world after all! It's a small world after all! It's a small world after all! It's a small, small- DAMN IT! WHO THREW THAT??"  
  
Four heads dipped simultaneously with mock innocence. Tai gave Griff a discrete high-five under the table as a newly damaged papaya rolled off into the corner inoffensively.  
  
Gennai rubbed his slowly bruising head, "Fine! Then you won't get your presents."  
  
"PRESENTS?!"  
  
Gennai smiled at the expected results. In no time he had children graveling at his feet begging for what ever gift he had in store for them. Oh, how he loved this.  
  
"Alright! Griff, let go of my leg! Stand up. Good. Now in my hand is something I think you'll find very useful, especially if you want to visit the real world."  
  
He opened his palm to reveal four simple, silver rings with two miniature orbs on each. The orbs were a different set of colors on each one. Tai received the ring with dark red and light orange spheres. Angela had dark blue and light purple, Griff had dark green and light yellow, and Shiva had a light grey and black. They each took them completely confused. Gennai continued speaking after handing them out.  
  
"Now let's see how good you are at following directions. Place these on your middle finger on your right hand. Alright, now push the darker of the colored buttons. Yes Angela, that's what they are, buttons, not pretty jewels."  
  
After following these directions they continued to stare at him waiting for more. Gennai just shook his head sadly and walked out of the room. They all shared a bewildered look. Then they did a double take.  
  
"Tai! You're wings are gone!"  
  
"Shiva! You have pupils!!!"  
  
"100% Skin, nice."  
  
"No more scales! Yes!"  
  
"No more tail! Shit!"  
  
"... I can wear shirts again!"  
  
Gennai strolled back into the kitchen, rolling his eyes at the one- track minds of his successors.  
  
"As you can see, these rings can control you're appearance. The darker of the two buttons brings you to you're human state; while the lighter will convert you into you're natural selves. And we, Piximon, Ace and I, that is, finished these just in time. We seem to have run into a little problem."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"PRODIGIOUS!!!!" Yolie slipped off the chair she was dozing off in and landed hard on her bottom. She angrily pushed her glasses back to the bridge of her nose with her forefinger and wiped a couple fallen, mauve locks from her face.  
  
"WHAT ARE YOU SHOUTING ABOUT??" Her usual boisterous voice boomed about the small classroom they were in.  
  
Izzy seemed unfazed to the verbal attack and was staring at the school computer monitor in excitement.  
  
"Get all the digidestined here now."  
  
"Argh, Fine!" She huffed, pulling out her D-terminal. She was never one to easily take orders.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"As much as I pride myself on keeping the digiworld a secret from you're original world... there are some individuals that seem to figure out everything." Gennai started with a heavy tone and a pointed look in Tai's direction.  
  
"Izzy, right?" Tai said with a flicker of a smile on his lips.  
  
"I'm afraid so. I swear there's no escaping that kid."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"So what's up Izzy?" Kari asked, holding T.K.'s hand in her own.  
  
Izzy gave them all a very smug and accomplished look, "How would you guys like to go visit our digimon as well as Tai?"  
  
"You can't be serious?"  
  
"But I thought Gennai sealed off our use for it for our protection?"  
  
"You figured it out? Oh, Izzy you're a genius!"  
  
"I can't wait to see Tai!"  
  
"I can't wait to see our digimon!"  
  
"How long should we stay?"  
  
Izzy held up a hand for silence.  
  
"I know you're all excited, but keep in mind that the digiworld is going through a rough time with a new evil affecting it and the new guardians are only in training. But we will have our digimon... so I suppose it wouldn't hurt to stay a while."  
  
"Great! When can we leave?" Davis asked eagerly.  
  
"Well, do you all have you're digivices?"  
  
Everyone nodded  
  
"Then now."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A bright light filled Ace's room signaling an arrival. Eleven individuals shakily got to their feet after a rough landing.  
  
"Where are we?" Sora asked, graciously accepting her boyfriend's hand to her feet.  
  
Izzy answered, "I believe we are in the coliseum that piximon brought us to during our first visit to the Digital world, which is now the current residence of the guardians."  
  
"Welcome back, digidestined." The group whipped around, knowing that voice all too well.  
  
"Gennai!"  
  
"Yes it's me, and if I hear any of you comment on my age so help me I'll have piximon assign you to chores again." he growled threateningly. Then he gave them a hearty smile, "Please make yourselves at home. We have accommodations for the boys and girls so feel free to stay as long as you see fit!"  
  
The digidestined sweat dropped and smiled nervously.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Oh shit! They're here!" Tai said in a frantic whisper after hearing recognizable voices from down a couple floors, "You guys, Shiva, please be normal. I mean, don't embarrass me or anything. They just won't be accustomed to the way things are here ya know?"  
  
Although poorly explained, the rest of the guardians understood what he meant and gave him a reassuring nod. After all, not everyone was close enough to each other to be able to have casual co-ed showering.  
  
"Hey, does this mean sometime we could have our friends come over here?" Angela asked thoughtfully.  
  
Griff shook his head, "No, humans aren't supposed to be in the digiworld, besides, Tai's friends were digidestined, so they're an exception."  
  
"Oh," Angela said disappointedly, then brightened, "well I better go get changed then! If these are our only new human friends for a while then I want to make a good impression!"  
  
"She'll definitely get on well with Mimi." Tai muttered, watching her skip back to her room. He heard a distinct giggling to his right. He glanced over his shoulder to see Shiva trying to stifle a laugh with her hands like a little girl.  
  
"Hey, guys, do me a favor. If you see a blimp... warm me."  
  
Tai and Griff were able to share a quick, bewildered look, before Shiva  
burst into tears and ran down the hall.  
  
"I just don't get her, mate." Griff commented.  
  
"Who does?" Tai made to go after her when a voice stopped him.  
  
"Tai."  
  
He turned to see all his friends standing together and he suddenly felt a new emotion stir inside of him. He was here, in the digiworld. In the digiworld with all his friends. Just like the old days. What he wouldn't give to go back to the times when he was a child, a leader maybe, but still an innocent child who just wanted adventures, soccer trophies, a date with Sora...  
  
"Oof!" Kari had once again tacked Tai in a hug.  
  
"I missed you so much! How have you been? How's the digiworld?"  
  
"I'm good! Training's going good; digiworld is slowly but surely healing from the raids. Moira's been loosing her hold on certain parties. A bit weird now that I think about it...so how you been? Not in my bed hopefully."  
  
T.K. gave a nervous laugh at this from the crowd.  
  
"Wait, who's Moira?" Ken asked.  
  
"Oh, her, she's ah, evil... yes, and she's the one trying to take over the digiworld... yup, don't know how else to explain her."  
  
"A girl?" Davis snorted, "Shouldn't be too hard for you then right Tai?"  
  
Mimi, Sora, Kari, and Yolie gave him a cold stare.  
  
A tall, dark young man who was silently standing besides Tai spoke up.  
  
"Yea, too bad he's too busy snogging her to get in a good punch." He said in a smooth British accent.  
  
Tai gave a loud cough and elbowed Griff in his side. Hopefully his friends weren't too up to date on British terminology.  
  
"Oh! You guys haven't met Griff," Tai spoke loudly as he gave Griff a meaning full look to keep his mouth shut, "he was just about to get his girlfriend, weren't you?"  
  
"NO NEED!" A loud yet sweet voice came from behind him. A pretty girl with long curly blond hair that bounced behind her as she came skipping down the hall jumped strait into her boyfriend's arms.  
  
"Hello beautiful"  
  
"Hey stud"  
  
"Not here." Tai warned. He gave an apologetic look to his friends only to realize their attention was focused behind him. He didn't need to look to know who was behind him. He didn't even need to know what she was doing. She was just going to get kicked. Hard. Tai whipped around.  
  
"SHIV-a..." his voice trailed at the spectacle he met. She was dressed only in a shirt, socks, and undies with a giant smiley face on the back of them. And she was doing the booty dance. Yes, THE booty dance. Hip shaking, moon walking and shimmying were just the beginning. This had to be stopped before it got ugly.  
  
Tai turned back to his friends, laughing nervously, "Heh heh- excuse me for a minute. Just... one minute."  
  
Shiva ran just in time as Tai came barreling after her down the hall and out of sight. Gennai grinned at the familiar behavior of the two.  
  
"So, who's hungry?"  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"That was delicious!" Mimi exclaimed after daintily wiping her mouth with a napkin. Needless to say, she, Angela and Yolie got on great together.  
  
"Yea, my compliments to the chief" Matt agreed. He, Joe, and Griff were another bunch who seemed to become fast friends. Ken, Cody, and Izzy, ever so eager to learn, had left with Gennai to go examine ACE.  
  
"That would be the future Mrs. Spander over here." Shiva replied dryly. She enjoyed getting nice, juicy stories from Kari about her brother's childhood and pinching Davis and T.K.'s cheeks while commenting on how cute they were. Angela blushed with this comment before going into a fierce whirl of whispering and giggling with Mimi and Yolie.  
  
Tai smiled warmly at the happy scene, glad that everyone was getting along so well. He looked to his left to see an attractive, auburn-haired girl sitting in peace. He felt slightly guilty that he had not spoken to his former best friend in a while; things between them had been awkward for quite some time after the Christmas incident.  
  
"So Sora how goes life in the real world?" he asked casually, leaning back and resting his forearms on the back of his chair.  
  
"It's great Tai; I came in second in my tennis championship!" She replied with a smile. God, his voice was deeper. He really had grown up. What happened to the boy who used to blush whenever she pecked him on the cheek or fantasize about becoming a pro soccer player?  
  
"Really?" Tai asked interested, "Who beat you?"  
  
"Oh just Kameko Hotaka."  
  
"Hotaka? As in Diran Hotaka's sister?! You should have decked her!"  
  
Sora laughed. How he missed that laugh. He noticed out of the corner pf his eye Shiva watching the two talking. She was always protective of him, as he was over her, and no matter how many times he tried to explain to her there were no hard feelings between him and Sora, she still resented the girl for hurting him a couple of years ago.  
  
"Don't tell me you've still got beef with Diran?"  
  
"Hey, he's the one who's got problem with me. You know he starts everything."  
  
"Well I wouldn't say everything," she giggled again, "There was that one time when you shot him in the butt with a paintball gun from under your desk."  
  
"Yea, two weeks of detention, but it was well worth it."  
  
Gennai's voice ended their conversation. "Tai, Shiva, if you two would be so kind as to clear the table?"  
  
Tai groaned and stood, gathering as many dishes as his arms would allow. On his way to the kitchen he walked past Sora, who seemed mildly disappointed at his departure but remained silent. Silent because she was too busy checking out his ass. What a nice ass...  
  
"Hey hun, how are things with Tai these days?" Matt said as he plopped down in Tai's now vacant seat. Sora studied the table suddenly feeling very guilty.  
  
"Oh he's great, Matt. We were just... catching up on old times..."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tai and Shiva dropped the dishes in the sink, obviously planning to wash them some other time. Shiva sat down heavily in a chair.  
  
"I saw you talking to that Sora girl." She replied with a conversional tone.  
  
"Yea, so what if I was?"  
  
Shiva frowned, "Do you still like her?"  
  
Tai faced the sink and began to run hot water from the faucet.  
  
"I don't know anymore," He said quietly, "I think I might still have some feelings for her, but she seems happy with Matt so I can get over it."  
  
"You can get over it?"  
  
"Yes..."  
  
"Well, then do you like Moira?"  
  
"WHAT?"  
  
"You heard me."  
  
"NO! I don't like her! She's my enemy!"  
  
"So was Myotismon, but I doubt you were sucking face with him. Do you just kiss anything with breasts?" Shiva replied coolly, giving him a hard time.  
  
"No! I couldn't help it! I think I was possessed! Stop laughing! Seriously, it was nothing more than...than... the animal attraction thing! Oh my god, I can't deal with this..."  
  
Shiva rose form her seat to where Tai was standing. She placed a hand on each side of his head and began to gently shake it back and forth, up and down.  
  
"What are you doing?" he asked, his cheeks cutely squished between her palms.  
  
"I'm shaking the frustration out of your head" she replied in concentration. Next, she dropped her hands and gave him a small smack on the cheek.  
  
"Ow, is this one of those reverse psychology things? You beat the child to make them feel loved?"  
  
"You bet bucko"  
  
Tai just rolled his eyes and returned to the dishes.  
  
"My feet are cold." She mumbled absently. Tai turned and gave her an incredulous look.  
  
"So?"  
  
"I like my feet warm."  
  
"Yea and I like it when you shut up." He replied harshly.  
  
"LALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALALA," she paused for a breath, "LALALALALALALALALALALALA..."  
  
Tai insipidly walked away from the sink for a moment and around the kitchen corner.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Meanwhile, in the living room, Shiva's singing reached the ears of many annoyed guests. Angela groaned and buried her head in Griff's shirt. Why must she be the only sane resident here?  
  
"What is that?" Mimi screamed over the noise, covering her ears with both hands.  
  
"That's Shiva's theme song." Griff hollered back.  
  
"Well how do we shut her up?" Matt yelled, incensed.  
  
Griff looked down at his nonexistent watch, "Tai should be taking care of it right about... now."  
  
And just on time the singing stopped; only to be replaced by an equally loud noise.  
  
SCHHHHH  
  
"AHHHHHHHH!!!"  
  
Seconds later Shiva came bolting into the room panting and looking hysterical.  
  
"He- he... EXTINGUISHED MY FEET!"  
  
Sure enough, Tai followed shortly after her, swinging a fire extinguisher in his right hand and looking quite pleased with himself.  
  
"Barking mad, the lot of them..." Angela continued to mutter at the floor.  
  
"Hey, if I have to listen to your shit, then you have to have cold feet." Tai smugly replied ignoring the gaping looks from the others and Angela's comment.  
  
"It's better if you just don't ask." Griff mumbled to Kari who was about to say something.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The rest of the evening passed with at ease with each others presence. The digidestined and guardians swapped adventure stories and well as a few spur-of-the-moment ones thrown in.  
  
"Ok, so we were at this fair once, and Tai decided he wanted some pizza. Sadly, he was in a creative mood that evening so instead of buying the pizza like normal people, he picked a random kid from the street and paid him twenty bucks to run by a group of barn workers and steal a box of pizza they ordered. Well, naturally the kid did it; I mean twenty bucks is twenty bucks, right? So the kid runs by, grabs the box and continued running around the barn and gave the box of pizza to Tai."  
  
"I started yelling at him that he just wasted 20 bucks on pizza when he could have gotten it for much less if he bought some the normal way, and he starts laughing his ass off. He's very confusing sometimes and I thought he was just having another one of them spastic moments, but no, he was a little bastard and gave that poor, manipulated, little boy fake money. I've never been more proud of him."  
  
Everyone was in hysterics by the time Shiva finished her story.  
  
Gennai glanced at the clock, "Look at the time! I think you should be off to bed. Some of us have training tomorrow."  
  
He instantly found himself on the receiving end of the evil eye from a few select individuals.  
  
"Alright ladies! Follow me!" Angela set off at a march with Mimi, Kari, Yolie and Sora right behind her. Shiva grudgingly followed too, but with a little more distance between her and the rest of them.  
  
"Ok guys, our room is this way." Tai and Griff led the male digidestined to the boy's dormitory. Tai sat on his bed and gestured towards the rest in the room, indicating that they could pick which one they wanted. Not that it mattered seeing as they were all identical.  
  
"Hey Tai..."  
  
"Yea Davis?"  
  
"Is it true you have co-ed showering?"  
  
... TBC 


	10. Mixed Emotions: Let's talk about the wea...

Chapter 10  
  
Sora woke to Mimi roughly shaking her back and forth.  
  
"Sora! Wake up! You have got to see this!"  
  
Sora let out a yawn when she sat up, arching her back and stretching her arms above her head.  
  
"What is it Mimi?" she looked around her and noticed Angela and Shiva were both missing from their beds. Kari and Yolie were a few beds over still asleep.  
  
"Shhh," Mimi whispered, "just follow me."  
  
Sora grabbed a bathrobe from the end of her bed and put it on like Mimi had done with hers. She followed Mimi out the bedroom door and noticed, with distaste, that her hair was in complete disarray while passing the mirror. She'd have to fix that later.  
  
They walked down the wooden corridor hearing only the soft padding of their bare feet on the cold floor.  
  
"Where exactly are we going?" Sora inquired, watching Mimi's pink hair bounce happily behind her. Mimi giggled.  
  
"Oh you'll see. Too bad you have a boyfriend or you might have found this more enjoyable."  
  
Sora gave her a look, "Mimi... I'm not sure I like where this is heading..."  
  
Mimi just giggled again.  
  
"Oh, don't worry Sora, we're just going 'sight seeing'. Besides, I know how much you like Matt. I know I wish I had a guy that good looking. You sure know how to choose your men!"  
  
"Damn strait I do!" Sora laughed. Mimi gave her a sly look.  
  
"Yea, Matt's definitely a hunk, but what about Tai?"  
  
Sora stumbled on a loose floorboard.  
  
"Tai? What about him." Mimi caught on to the nervous tone in her friend's voice.  
  
"Well he certainly is sexy, don't you think? I mean his hair is just so cool now! And his body is so lithe and muscular and tan..."  
  
"MIMI!" Sora exclaimed, aghast. She had never heard Mimi talk about boys this detailed before. "I can't think of Tai like that! He's my childhood friend!"  
  
"So what? He REALLY grew up." Mimi pursed her lips in a thoughtful manner. "Hmmm... do you think you would have gone out with Tai instead of Matt if you knew he was going to turn out like this?"  
  
"Are you implying that I would go out with guy's based on their looks?" Sora asked angrily. Mimi held up her hand defensively.  
  
"No, no! Not at all! I was just wondering if you're interested in him right now?"  
  
"No! I'm very happy with Matt thank you very much."  
  
Mimi stopped when they reached the balcony, grabbed Sora by the shoulders and turned her so she was facing the training grounds. The subject of their conversation was below wielding his sword in exercise.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Um... I mean yes. Yes I'm sure."  
  
Sora's eyes were wide and glued to Tai. Sweat coated his shirtless body during his workout. His tanned skin glistened in the early morning sun with it as it dripped and rolled down his pecks, over his dark nipples, his abs...  
  
"Um, Sora."  
  
Sora tore her gaze away from his torso, "huh?"  
  
"I think you're drooling."  
  
"Am I?" Sora cried out horrified, whipping her mouth frantically. She anxiously peered over the balcony at Tai, hoping her outburst didn't draw his attention to them, and was relieved to see him still swinging his blade around so fast she could only see flashes of silver.  
  
"Told you it was good didn't I?" Mimi smirked.  
  
Sora had to agree with her there, "Well I'm certainly awake now."  
  
"So Sora, " Mimi began in a business like way as they started back to their room. "Since you seem content with Matt, can I have Tai?"  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
Sora was sure she must have heard Mimi wrong. Did Mimi mean she wanted to date Tai? To kiss and hold him the way a girlfriend would? Then of course she couldn't have him! Tai was her- not hers. Realization dawned on her face. She found it near impossible to comprehend Tai being interested in another girl other than herself. Up until now she had thought Tai was wrapped around her finger, that he would always be there if things with Matt didn't work out. How could she expect Tai to wait around for her while she turned him down in the first place? Was Matt really the right one for her?  
  
Sora found herself becoming more and more distressed about the whole situation, and suddenly she's questioning her relationship with Matt. How could this happen? She had the crest of love for Christ's sake! She was falling for Tai and now she's tied down by another relationship because she couldn't wait for him. Wait... was she only interested in Tai's body or did she really have deep feeling for him? Was she that shallow? And now Mimi wanted him? Could she live with that?  
  
"Soooooooooraaaaaaa"  
  
Sora looked up to see Mimi waving a hand in front of her face. She saw Angela was also standing in front of her and for some reason was soaking wet.  
  
"I'm sorry, were you saying something?" Sora blushed at her rudeness for spacing out on them like that.  
  
"I said 'it's not likely'." Angela said as she began to ring out her long curls. Water splashed on the hard wood floor, chilling their bare feet.  
  
"What's not likely?" Sora asked.  
  
"That Mimi would get with Tai." She answered simply.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because you'd have to face the wrath of to Shiva. And before you ask, no they are not going out, but I am not exaggerating when I say she's very protective of him. Oh, and there's the small, trifling fact that he's having an affair with Moira." She added as an after thought.  
  
Sora suddenly felt very distant from her body. An affair? With the enemy?  
  
Mimi voiced Sora's thoughts, but with a much fervor.  
  
"An affair? With the enemy? Oh my god! That's so romantic!"  
  
Angela and Sora face-faulted.  
  
"Mimi, that's not a good thing-"  
  
"It a forbidden love!" Mimi raved, ignoring Sora, "Sneaking off at night to share a passionate evening in the moonlight-"  
  
"No, no, NO! They do not love each other" Angela tried to clear up the misunderstanding, "It's only because she was in love with Taro- and Tai happens to be his reincarnation, therefore feeling attraction towards her."  
  
Angela got two blank looks in response from Sora and Mimi.  
  
"Never mind, Gennai will explain it later. Besides, I need to take a shower- I smell like salt" Angela said distastefully as she picked at another piece of her damp hair.  
  
"Well we'll join you!" Sora answered, glad to get out of that conversation. Unfortunately she was thrown back in.  
  
"Hmmm, I wonder how well endowed he is."  
  
"MIMI!" Sora scolded, unwilling to admit she was thinking the same thing at one point during the morning.  
  
"Very well." Angela hooted.  
  
"Hang on, how would you know?" Mimi asked accusingly.  
  
"Co-ed showering!" She answered in a singsong voice, "But if you don't believe me, you can always ask Shiva. She personally knows every inch of his body."  
  
"Ahhh!" Mimi screamed, "Oh my god, have they-?"  
  
"More than once." Angela interjected.  
  
"WHAT???" Sora shouted in disbelief. For the second time in an hour Sora felt her insides turn to ice. "I thought you said they weren't going out?"  
  
Angela gave Sora a dazed look and wondered what she could have possibly said to receive such an outburst from her.  
  
"Well they aren't, but they used to for like six months when they were thirteen. That was their first time together. Now they're just friends with benefits. They only have sex to vent frustration and stuff... or they paintball gun Gennai for that, whatever their in the mood for."  
  
"W-wait a minute. So Tai lost his virginity at only thirteen?"  
  
"Oooh! He's experienced." Mimi appeared impressed by the whole situation. She was very good at being an optimist.  
  
"Yea," Angela sighed, "But he's only had sex with a couple other cheerleaders and that's all. I, on the other hand, have screwed by man more times than I can count."  
  
Her and Mimi giggled and started up a conversation on Griff's sex drive that Sora had no desire to take part in. She couldn't believe him. All this time she thought he'd only kissed a couple of girls and that was it; it was all he told her anyways. Suddenly she felt so inexperienced compared to him. Before she had believed she was ahead of the game and proud of it. After all- she'd already made it to second base with Matt. A great swell of anger gathered in her chest. How dare he. He was sleeping around when he was only thirteen. They were still best friends then and he never thought to tell her. It made her wonder what else he was keeping from her.  
  
"He's gunna get it," she snarled under her breath.  
  
"Pardon?" Angela said politely, breaking her conversation with Mimi.  
  
"Huh? Oh!" Sora blushed realizing she had spoken out loud. Angela smiled knowingly.  
  
"Still contemplating about Tai's sex life are we?"  
  
"My sex life?"  
  
All three girls looked up horrified at being caught. Tai, Griff and Shiva had showered and changed and were standing before them very much amused.  
  
"Tai!" Mimi exclaimed as though the thought of him naked in bed never crossed her mind. "How are you this morning? We were just talking about the weather... and stuff."  
  
"The weather?" Tai asked, fully knowing she was lying.  
  
Mimi giggled nervously, "Yup. The weather."  
  
"Hey what's going on here?" Matt asked as he walked up to the group flanked by the rest of the digidestined. It seemed that in the time since they left the training ground everyone had gotten dressed and ready for the day. Sora suddenly felt more self-conscious about her un-brushed hair than ever.  
  
Oh, just talking about my sex life- my bad," Tai gave a dry laugh, "... I meant the weather." He emphasized on the word weather while shooting the girls a shrewd grin.  
  
"Your sex life?" Kari raised an eyebrow in disbelief.  
  
Oh, so he didn't even tell his sister. Sora thought to herself. Sneaky little bastard.  
  
"I think I'm allergic to sex," Joe declared while pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose with his forefinger. He received quite a few weird looks at that statement.  
  
"You're a sick man Kido." Shiva chortled as she lazily hung an arm around his neck. Joe looked a little uncomfortable for a moment before relaxing.  
  
"I was just kidding-"  
  
"THERE YOU ARE!"  
  
Everyone jumped as Gennai came speed walking down the corridor after the group.  
  
"I've been looking everywhere for you kids! Do have any idea how big this place is? What are you all doing over here? Are you plotting something? I am telling you now I will not fall for any of your childish pranks."  
  
"Talk about paranoid" Davis mumbled. T.K. nodded his agreement.  
  
Tai stepped forward, "We were doing nothing of the sort! We were just having an innocent orgy, I mean- we were talking about the weather."  
  
Mimi, Sora, Angela, Griff and Shiva laughed.  
  
"Whatever, I'm calling a meeting right now, so you know where to go."  
  
Yolie was about to tell him she didn't know what he was talking about but Griff put a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Its the room with Ace in it." He clarified.  
  
"Wait!" Angela screeched, "I need a shower! I still smell like fish!"  
  
"Fine. Make it fast." Gennai warned.  
  
Angela sprinted down the hall towards the showers, Mimi and Sora running after her.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
About an hour and a half later every one was seated in the meeting room. Gennai had just finished bringing the digidestined up to date on everything going on in the digiworld, as well as the history of it, including the first five digidestined and the identities of the new guardians. Kari was the most shocked at finding out about her brother's lack of humanity and kept shooting him dubious looks throughout the meeting. Izzy, on the other hand, was completely fascinated by it and repeatedly fired questions at Gennai until Yolie became so fed up that she put him in a headlock.  
  
"Yolie!" gagged Izzy, clawing at her arms.  
  
Shiva leaned back in her chair, "Hey, I like this girl!"  
  
"I just have one more question, I swear!" Izzy wheezed, "I thought your house was under a lake, what's up with this."  
  
Apparently Yolie was wondering this as well because she let go of him. Izzy took a dramatic gulp of air.  
  
"Well, I simply decided that for training these halfwits I would need to find a much bigger residence. They've destroyed enough as it is while only in their human forms."  
  
"We resent that." Angela spoke on her comrades' behalf. Gennai just waved her off and continued.  
  
"I gathered a team of skilled digimon to help me move a particularly large coliseum to this fine location. Do any of you originals recognize this place at all?"  
  
"I do!" T.K. spoke up. He appeared to be the only one because the other digidestined stared at him, waiting for him to inform them.  
  
"Come on you guys. This is where Agumon first digivolved into Skullgreymon!"  
  
There was a collective 'OH!' of recognition from the majority of the room.  
  
Gennai cleared his throat loudly.  
  
"Anyway, there is a reason I called you all here. I have another mission for my guardians to go on. But before I go into detail- this is a mission that I think we will need the help of the digidestined for... so naturally I invited some friends." He opened the door and eleven figures charged into the room, each tackling a different digidestined.  
  
"Hey Matt!"  
"Gabumon!"  
  
"Yo Joe! How's it hanging?"  
"Gomamon! Wait... how's what hanging?"  
  
"Hello Ken."  
"Wormmon!"  
  
"Sora! I've missed you!"  
"Biyomon!"  
  
"Greetings Izzy" "Tentomon!"  
  
"Kari!"  
"Oh Gatomon!"  
  
"Davish!"  
"Veemon! What's up dude?"  
  
"T.K.!"  
"Patamon!"  
  
"Howdy Cody!" "Armadillomon!"  
  
"Yolie!"  
"Hawkmon!"  
  
"Mimi!"  
"Palmon! You're skin looks great, have you been getting more sun?"  
  
Griff, Angela, and Shiva looked on utterly perplexed.  
  
"Wow. There's, uh, a lot of hugging going on here." Griff stated baffled.  
  
Angela cocked her head to the side.  
  
"I think it's kind of sweet."  
  
"I-can't-take-this." Shiva ground out while buying her face in the back of Tai's shirt. Tai didn't seem to notice her. He just watched all his friends sadly as they cuddled their dearly missed digimon.  
  
"Tai, where's Agumon?" Kari asked while stroking Gatomon's ears.  
  
Tai sighed heavily.  
  
"My digivice exploded when I was appointed as a guardian, meaning I was no longer a digidestined and therefore breaking the bond Agumon and I shared. I can't help him digivolve anymore."  
  
"Oh Tai- I'm sorry..." Sora sincerely felt sorry for him. To loose a bond as strong as one held between digimon and digidestined would be extremely emotionally straining. She found the anger she held towards him in the morning vanish as pity replaced it. Tai just smiled reassuringly at her.  
  
"It's o.k., really, I've seen him around the digiworld every now and then. We're still buds and all. He even sometimes helps us out on raids."  
  
"Alright Gennai, now what about this mission?" Shiva said, clearly trying to prevent Tai from speaking to Sora again. Tai rolled his eyes and kicked Shiva with his heel.  
  
"Ah yes. Very well. First I must explain to the digidestined about the prophecy. For the past few months I have been setting these four out in search of a prophecy in-between their training and raids. This prophecy is needed to finish this war with Moira. I do not know the contents of it, but who ever is in possession of it is most likely to win the war. Now I happen to know where it is- but retrieving it will be the challenge."  
  
"Please don't tell me what I think you are..." Tai prayed. The other guardians exchanged nervous look.  
  
"Moira has it-"  
  
Tai swore. Gennai gave him a warning look and continued.  
  
"- I now believe it's being held in Bastion Hall."  
  
"Bastion- Oh! That giant fortress on Tenbit Island?" Angela asked.  
  
"Yes, it is heavily guarded and we will need all the help we can manage to find."  
  
"Where the hell is Tenbit Island?" Davis asked, clearly annoyed that he was unable to follow this conversation.  
  
"We'll lead you there. Matt should recognize it; it was where we had our first physical brawl." Tai pretended to wipe a tear from his cheek.  
  
"Yea, because you were being an ass!" Matt laughed. Tai faked a scowl.  
  
"I was only working towards the greater good!"  
  
"Whatever you say man."  
  
"So we need to take care of the guards while they get the prophecy?" Ken asked while making a gesture towards the trainees.  
  
"Actually, that's exactly the opposite of what we're going to do." He paused a moment, admiring the confused looks the younger crowd shared. He faced the new guardians.  
  
"Moira is smart. She's been researching each of your weaknesses and hope to lure you into the hall with the prophecy where she and her army of Guardmon can defeat you. That's why we're going to have the digidestined retrieve the prophecy while my successors will take care of the majority of the guards."  
  
Shiva looked thoughtful for a moment. "So basically we're walking into a trap?"  
  
"Pretty much." Gennai replied coolly.  
  
"Cool."  
  
"But doesn't Moira have any weaknesses we can use against her?" Kari asked, looking somewhat fearful at what they were about to attempt.  
  
"Well I can think of one..." Griff threw a meaningful look in Tai's direction. Gennai smiled artfully.  
  
"Yes, her heart does seem to be her downfall."  
  
Tai swiftly caught on what they were doing.  
  
"Don't look at me like that! What do you want me to do? Screw her while you guys make off with the prophecy?"  
  
"Not like you would complain," Shiva snorted. Tai glared at her.  
  
"Never mind that now," Gennai said, making his way over to Ace. "Ace, if you would be so kind as to send these fine young people to Tenbit Island."  
  
"Certainly Gennai," responded the calm female voice. The giant screen instantly glowed a brilliant, mesmerizing blue.  
  
"Ladies first," Griff bowed to Angela, who giggled in return before delicately stepping through the gateway. Griff offered the same liberality to Mimi, Yolie, Sora and Kari- much to their delight.  
  
One by one the digidestined stepped through the portal while Gennai dished out his customary last minute advise.  
  
"Now be aware of you're surroundings, don't underestimate your opponents Tai, you will have to look past on whatever relationship you-"  
  
"-I AM NOT HAVING AN AFFAIR WITH HER!" Tai yelled. Shiva grabbed him by the scruff of his shirt and pulled him through the open portal with her.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Thanks for the reviews!  
  
Sorry if this one didn't have a lot happening. The next chapter's going to have a lot of fighting.  
  
And Tai isn't as big of a man whore as he came off to be either. 


	11. The ProphecyI: Why must they be such guy...

Chapter 11  
  
Matt stretched his arms above his head, inhaling a deep breath of winter fresh air. He found himself once again on Tenbit Island. Of course this time the circumstances were much less precarious.  
  
"Oh how this brings back memories, wouldn't you say Gabumon? Of course, you were naked for half the experience..."  
  
Everyone's gaze was drawn to Gabumon's affronted form.  
  
"Matt! I was saving you, remember?" Gabumon cried out with a faint blush creeping across his muzzle.  
  
"Gabumon was naked? Why would he be naked?" Patamon asked naively.  
  
"Some digimon do that for fun you know. They're called nudists." Said Hawkmon with a knowledgeable air.  
  
"Gabumon! You're a nudisht? Cool! So am I!" Veemon exclaimed while spreading his arms out to prove the lack of clothes.  
  
By this time Gabumon was beet red form embarrassment and put tomatoes to shame. Everyone was laughing by now at the digimons' behavior. Sora decided to take over from here before Gabumon would have to suffer any more torment.  
  
"That's enough you guys. We're on a mission and this is not time to be fooling around. Save that for when we have the prophecy."  
  
"Spoilsport." Matt mumbled into her ear. Sora playfully swatted at his arm that had snaked around her waist.  
  
"She's right. I think it's best if we change to our more appropriate forms." Griff said logically, gaining favorable nods from his fellow guardians. Excited and anxious murmurs broke from the group at the prospect of seeing what beings their friends- or family in Kari's case- would turn into. Izzy was practically skipping.  
  
"This is by far the most fascinating thing that will ever occur in my entire life. I wonder what attributes you guys have and if this affects your personal qualities in any way. What if we were to cross breed you guys-" A sharp slap to the back of the head abruptly stopped him from continuing, courtesy of Yolie.  
  
"Izzy, no matter what specie they are, you will not treat them like an experiment. I forbid you to cross breed anything but the bacteria in your mouth." She said tartly. Izzy gave her a bitter look and seemed as if he were thinking of a comeback to say to that remark. Retorts were never his strong point.  
  
Tai, Shiva, Griff, and Angela decided now would be the best time to transform themselves before Izzy earned himself another headlock. Simultaneously they lifted their right hands and pressed the lighter button on their rings.  
  
The digidestined staggered back as cyclones of fire, water, stone, and silver erupted from the ground. The wonder of different elements rising in such a manner left them speechless. In a few seconds they had died down to reveal their not-so-human friends standing before them in their true natures. At first, the only sound that could be heard was the frantic typing of Izzy on his laptop and the howling, bitter wind of Tenbit Island. Tai bit his lip nervously as his fears of being rejected by his friends grew steadily with their silence. He caught his sister's eye and attempted to smile. Kari promptly fainted.  
  
"Kari!" T.K. cried as he rushed to her side. Tai hurried over as well and dropped to his knees by her side.  
  
"Glad she took that well."  
  
"Shut up Shiva." Tai automatically responded. He placed a hand on Kari's cheek.  
  
"Tai..." Kari said dazedly. Tai tightened his hold on her hand.  
  
"Yes, it's me."  
  
Kari squinted her eyes for a moment before focusing them on him.  
  
"Tai- C-can... I ... can I pet your wings?"  
  
Everyone surrounding her sweat dropped. T.K. helped a slightly shaky Kari stand to her feet as they backed up.  
  
"Now that she mentioned it..." Mimi trailed off, looking slightly embarrassed.  
  
Tai stood to his full height and crossed his arms over his bare chest. He eyed the anxious girls suspiciously, ruffling his feathers.  
  
"Fine-"  
  
"Yes!" The females screamed. They rushed over to the startled young man and instantly began gushing over the supple, pallid feathers. Shiva cackled at the slightly horrified look on his face. She knew what too much wing petting led to...  
  
"Is this real?" Davis asked, popping up out of nowhere and lifting her tail. Shiva snatched it out his grasp.  
  
"Yes." She said darkly.  
  
Davis seemed unfazed by her demonic presence, unlike most other digidestined, who seemed too intimidated by her to speak to her. The fact that Davis was willing to befriend her no matter how she looked made her smile.  
  
"FANGS!" he yelled excitedly and reached into her mouth to touch them.  
  
"Don't yell by my ears, damn it! They're sensitive!"  
  
"Your eyes are so cool..."  
  
Shiva began to wonder if anything could get through this kid's head. He seemed to have an acute case of A.D.D.  
  
"Sweet arm!" Matt said to Griff looking enviously at the gleaming appendage. Griff grinned cheekily at him.  
  
"Just wait till you see it in action," he quipped.  
  
"Yea? So you think you could take on Tai for me? He seems to be getting all the attention at the moment, especially from my girlfriend." Matt said good-naturedly. The pair looked on laughing as the females assaulted Tai.  
  
"O-ok girls. Petting time is up. Pleeeeeeaaaaase stop." Tai whimpered as he steadily backed up from the onslaught.  
  
"But your feathers are so soft." Mimi cooed softly.  
  
"Yea, and white," Yolie added.  
  
"And pretty." Said Kari.  
  
"Are you angel Tai?" Sora asked. She pouted as Tai snatched the last feather from her grasp and put a descent distance between him and the girls.  
  
"I'm a God, damn it; not some pansy little angel." He huffed.  
  
"Ooooooooh! A GOD!" Mimi squealed in awe.  
  
"Demi-god!" Shiva yelled across the premises.  
  
"Shut up!" Tai yelled back.  
  
Meanwhile, Angela was undergoing an interrogation of the worst kind.  
  
"Can you breath under water? Do those scales what any magical attributes? Is your hearing enhanced with those ears? Are you able to feel anything when you transform from human to nymph? Do Canadian nymphs have different diets then other nymphs of the world? Are there any other nymphs of the world?"  
  
Angela became instantly dizzy with the constant questioning and had to beckon Yolie over to stop him before she did something she would regret. Izzy soon found himself in yet another headlock from the forceful girl and it took both T.K. and Ken to pry her off him.  
  
"Alright you guys, I think it's time we get this prophesy. I have an exam on eyeballs tomorrow I have to study for."  
  
"You have an exam on balls?"  
  
"EYEballs!"  
  
"Oh- is that code for testicles?"  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Shiva, behave. Joe, ignore her." Tai commanded while walking toward the looming castle in the distance. The group followed him dutifully.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The assorted crowd waited patiently for Shiva to hop down from her perch on the towering castle wall. Upon her landing she explained what they were up against.  
  
"Well, I just saw Moira walk inside surrounded by her personal gorillamon so you digidestined be careful getting that prophecy. We got a couple hundred devidramon guarding the outer castle vicinity. We'll take care of them. "  
  
Tai smiled, relieved, "Oh, good, there's only a couple hundred of them."  
  
Angela gave him an incredulous look. "What's got you so optimistic?"  
  
"Nothing, I just felt like saying that."  
  
"Ugg. Whatever. So what's the happening here?"  
  
Tai put his game face on. The one that was all too familiar with the digidestined.  
  
"Alright guys, here's the plan. Us guardians will do an all out attack and try to take as many out as possible with the first blow. That should provide enough of a distraction for you guys to slip in. Try to avoid getting caught by Moira herself but I'm sure you'll have no problems with the gorillamon. We'll find you guys once we've taken care of the outer guard. Agreed?"  
  
"AGREED!" everyone chorused back.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Guarding an isolated castle in the middle of an artic island and ruled over by a temperamental bitch wasn't an ideal lifestyle. Of course, suddenly getting thrown back by an explosion and loosing half your guards while on duty wasn't either. The platoon leader of the devidramon leapt to the air in fury as four figures swept down upon his digimon and began attacking. Puffs of smoke blew out of his nostrils. There was no way in hell he'd stand for this. Unbeknown to him, a larger, motley group ran behind him and through the castle doors.  
  
"Hey! I think we just took out at least half of them!" Shiva yelled to her comrades as she swiped the throat of a charging devidramon with her deadly claws.  
  
"Yea- but that was all of our most powerful attacks combined; our energy's going to be a little low. Take it easy from here on will ya?"  
  
"This comes from the guy wielding a handheld bonfire." Griff muttered loud enough for Tai to hear. Tai playfully swung his sword over Griff's head, causing the cyborg to yelp and duck.  
  
"Hey boys! You're missing out on all the action!" Angela's voice rang out. Indeed the girls were already pounding devidramon after devidramon while the two men of the team bantered childishly. Shots of energy beams rained down on the girls from the beast's mouths. Angela busied herself with neutralizing their attacks with rays of water while Shiva would pounce upon the distracted digimon and tear through them with her claws and daggers.  
  
"Hey, they are getting all the action..." Griff reasoned looking slightly put out. But at that moment the gleaming sun reflected off the shimmering scales covering Angela's torso. Griff's eyes seemed to linger up there for longer than necessary. Then they were drawn downwards to the smooth, toned leg that was exposed from the sarong tied to her slim waist.  
  
"Perhaps we should join them instead of just staring at them..." Tai trailed, his gaze following Griff's.  
  
"Yea..."  
  
Neither moved.  
  
Out of the corner of her eye, Angela noticed two devidramon closing in on her from each side. Of course before she saw this, she heard it with her advantageously fanned ears. Lifting her arms at a ninety-degree angle, a lilac-blue mist was shot into the air and surrounded her. The devidramon dove blindly into the cloud towards the nymph. When the mist settled the ashen-haired girl remained standing while the devidramon were nowhere in sight.  
  
Shiva was thrown into the jagged wall of the castle as the tail of a devidramon caught her in the side. The devidramon charged at the young woman while she was shaking the disorientation from her head. Seconds before the deadly fangs were to catch their prey, Shiva leapt into the air and clear over the digimon. Unable to stop quickly enough, the devidramon collided head on into the wall and fell unconscious. Shiva swished her tail haughtily.  
  
"Gotta be faster than that hunny."  
  
Tai was suddenly aware of how tight those leather black clothes were on Shiva. There was also a definite sway to her hips that she displayed during intervals between each brawl. From the distance, Tai noticed Angela say something to Shiva after killing another devidramon. Shiva smiled, revealing her fangs.  
  
"Dude-"  
  
"Yea?"  
  
"Do you ever wonder... what it would be like to kiss someone with fangs?"  
  
Griff tore his eyes form the girls and looked at Tai incredulously.  
  
"You mean you haven't kissed Shiva in her demon form yet?"  
  
"Nope," Tai admitted, "But now that I think about it, it would be kind of... uh..."  
  
"Kinky?"  
  
"Yea..."  
  
The pair then went back to their silent admiring.  
  
Shiva paused amidst a couple undeleted bodies of devidramon to wipe the sweat from her brow. She found it a little unsettling how it was taking them twice as long to kill all the guards. She knew something was wrong. The area seemed to be lacking... stupidity. That's when Shiva discovered the problem.  
  
"Angela?"  
  
Angela sent a beam of water through the chest of a devidramon with a wave of her hand, "yea?"  
  
"Where are the guys?"  
  
Abandoning their fight, the two females turned in spite of themselves and searched for the rest of their team. And then they spotted them, a good fifty meters off in the distance- doing absolutely nothing for the cause.  
  
Angela rolled her eyes, "The audacity of it all."  
  
Shiva cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Hey shit-for- brains! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"  
  
Tai and Griff just stood there for a moment, blinking. Then Griff cupped his hands around his mouth in the same manner as Shiva and yelled back, "WE'VE BEEN DISTRACTED!"  
  
Angela and Shiva shared a look before searching the grounds for any signs of a distraction.  
  
Angela looked at the two baffled. She replied, "WHAT'S DISTRACTING YOU?"  
  
Tai had to shake the naughty thoughts from his head before answering.  
  
"YOU'RE LEGS... SHIVA'S BREASTS... THE GENERAL LACK OF CLOTHES..."  
  
A vein popped out on Shiva's head as she clenched her fists in frustration. Why must they be such guys? Of course she got no support from Angela, whose red blush contrasted sharply with her pale blue skin. Shiva sighed, knowing it was up to her to slap some sense into the men since Angela was too busy giggling.  
  
"GET YOU'RE LAZY, SEX-DRIVEN, CHAUVINISTIC ASSES OUT HERE AND HELP US!"  
  
The boys remained stationary. When Shiva yelled she had leaned forward...showing off more cleavage...  
  
"START FIGHTING OR SO HELP ME I'LL—I'LL SHAVE YOUR LEGS IN YOUR SLEEP!"  
  
Tai raised an eyebrow.  
  
"AND THEN SOME!"  
  
That got Tai moving.  
  
"Come on Griff, let's finish these guys before I loose the fire power on my sword."  
  
"Yes- and then I will have wild, hot, human sex with Angela."  
  
Tai just shook his head, "Ya know if someone had said that a couple months ago..."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The digidestined approached the grand double doors that led to the interior of the fortress. Upon entrance, Matt took command of the now leaderless group.  
  
"Alright guys, we need to find the prophecy as quickly as possible before we run into Moira."  
  
"I think we should have our digimon digivolve to their champion levels before we go any further." Izzy said while whipping out his handy- dandy laptop.  
  
"Alright guys! You heard the man!" Davis said to the digimon.  
  
Tentomon digivolve too... Kabuterimon  
  
Palmon digivolve too... Togemon  
  
Gabumon digivolve too... Garurumon  
  
Biyomon digivolve too... Birdramon  
  
Gomamon digivolve too... Ikakumon  
  
"DIGI-ARMOR ENERGIZE!" The newer digidestined shouted.  
  
Veemon armor digivolve too... Flamdramon  
  
Gatomon armor digivolve too... Nefertimon  
  
Patamon armor digivolve too... Pegasusmon  
  
Armadillomon armor digivolve too... Digmon  
  
Hawkmon armor digivolve too... Halsemon  
  
Wormmon armor digivolve too... Stingmon  
  
Thankfully the hall was big enough for the enlarged digimon to fit comfortably in.  
  
"So do we split up now? So we can find the prophecy faster." Yolie asked.  
  
"Dude- what do you think Izzy is for?" Davis said rolling his eyes.  
  
"Don't call me a dude!"  
  
"Don't tell me what I can't call you!"  
  
"-Huh?"  
  
Izzy of course, by that time, was already tracking to location of the prophesy on his computer.  
  
"I'm not sure how I should take that." Izzy said offhandedly. After hitting a few more keys he exclaimed, "Prodigious!"  
  
"You found it?"  
  
"No"  
  
"'WHAT?"  
  
"Just kidding. It's in a room to our left. The door should be covered in runes."  
  
Mimi, who was leaning against a particularly rough part of he wall, turned to find rune-covered door they needed.  
  
"Well," she said, catching the attention of the others, "that was a little too easy."  
  
"Who cares? Let's just get that prophecy and get out!"  
  
Davis pushed the large oak doors open and forcefully strode into the room.  
  
"ENERGY CANNON!"  
  
"FIRE ROCKET!"  
  
Davis blinked unthinkingly at the cloud of smoke in front of his face where Flamdramon had canceled the attack of a gorillamon.  
  
Looking up at his digimon Davis said, "Thanks Flamedramon!"  
  
Flamedramon kept his eyes on the scene before him while he answered, "Anytime Davis."  
  
An uncountable number of gorillamon launched their attack at the intruders. The destined digimon sprang into action with blocking and countering the attacks to protect their partners. While the fighting resumed, a soft, blue glow emitted from the midst of the digimon.  
  
"THERE!" Sora yelled to those behind her, "The prophecy is there! It's glowing! We've got to get to the center of the room."  
  
"Alright guys," Matt called up to their fighting digimon, "clear a path for us- we'll get the prophecy, you take care of the gorillamon!"  
  
"You got it Matt," Garurumon growled. He jumped in front of the digidestined; now facing a particularly nasty looking group of gorillamon.  
  
"Howling Blaster!" The icy flames knocked quite a few of the gorillamon down- only to have more replace them.  
  
"HEY!" Garurumon yelled to his comrades, "I need a little help here!"  
  
Nefertimon, Halsemon and Stingmon raced to his aid leaving the rest of the destined digimon to fend off the surrounding gorillamon.  
  
"Let's combine our attacks" Garurumon ordered. The three other digimon nodded.  
  
"ROSETTA STONE!"  
  
"TEMPESTWIND!"  
  
"SPIKNG STRIKE!"  
  
"HOWLING BLASTER!"  
  
The impeding gorillamon were deleted, leaving a clear path ahead. Before them was a table with its surface sending off a faint glow. The digidestined made a break for it; dodging debris and attacks along the way. Matt, Sora, Davis, Ken and T.K.- being the most athletic- were in the lead with Izzy and Yolie bringing up the rear. Ken was the first to reach the glowing table (he wasn't known as the rocket for nothing) and turned to face the rest of the group. However, his relief at reaching the table unharmed was short lived. A pair of gorillamon appeared to have slipped past the defense of their digimon and began to close in on the group from behind.  
  
"IZZY! YOLIE! BEHIND YOU!" He bellowed, hoping to catch the attention of some of their digimon as well. Izzy and Yolie turned and watched in horror as the two gorillamon charged at them... before being swallowed up by the ground.  
  
The entire group of digidestined sweat dropped.  
  
Digmon popped up from the ground, his nose and hands still spinning from his recent attack, "I got your back! You just worry about that prophesy."  
  
"Thanks Digmon!" Cody yelled back at his digimon. He had reached the table by this time as well. A few seconds later the last of the digidestined arrived.  
  
The table had a round, gritty, stone surface that went well with the theme of the castle. Placed on the center of it, giving off the faint glow that helped them locate it, was a square stone tablet covered in strange engravings.  
  
"Looks more like one of the Ten Commandments." Kari mumbled, as she lifted the slab. The second her hands touched the stone tablet a piercing, bright light filled the room, momentarily blinding the digidestined. The only thing that could be heard was the screams of the gorillamon as they were deleted. Finally the light dimmed and all that was left in he room was a team of truly bewildered digidestined and their digimon.  
  
Palmon blinked at her outstretched arm where she once held the neck of a gorillamon. She looked dazedly over at Ikakumon who appeared just as confused as she. He met her gaze and just shrugged. If it's not broken don't fix it, he thought.  
  
The hall was once again silent after the digimon dedigivolved to their rookie forms.  
  
"Finally, we can relax." Joe sighed as he picked up Gomamon from the ground. Of course in saying this, he wasn't expecting any other presence in the room besides him and the other digidestined.  
  
"Careful, you might jinx yourself." A somewhat familiar voice growled in his ear.  
  
"GAAHHH!" Joe jumped behind the nearest person, which happened to be Mimi.  
  
Shiva barked out a loud laugh as the digidestined looked at her in annoyance.  
  
"Go easy on him Sheeves, I think I remember him telling me he was allergic to an increased heart rate."  
  
Everyone did a 180 to see Griff leaning against one of the pearl columns.  
  
"So, I see you've taken care of the devidramon?" Ken smirked.  
  
"And you seem to have found the prophecy," Angela grinned as she announced her presence while Tai stood a couple feet behind her, "Well done."  
  
Yolie stepped forward, holding the prophesy out to Angela. The prophecy had now lost is ethereal glow and the runes on it could be seen quite clearly. Angela groaned.  
  
"What's wrong hun?" Griff asked while he rubbed her back with his more human hand.  
  
"It's in digirunes," she explained.  
  
Cody looked worried, "And no one can decipher them?"  
  
"Dude- I bet Izzy can figure it out on hid laptop, right man?" Davis said with confidence.  
  
Izzy just shook his head, "I don't have that program loaded onto my computer yet. These are a new type of runes I suppose."  
  
"They are," Tai said, "Professoramon has just started teaching them to us, but I'm afraid we don't know enough to decipher them on our own."  
  
"Don't worry about it Tai. When we get back to Gennai's I'll just get the program from him and we'll decipher it there," Izzy replied.  
  
Shiva looked down at the stone tablet in Angela's hand. One particular rune caught her eye.  
  
"Hey! This one means despair!" She pointed to the rune.  
  
"No- that's darkness."  
  
"Nu-huh. That's definitely despair."  
  
"Darkness!"  
  
"Despair!"  
  
"Darkness!"  
  
"Despair!"  
  
"Dark-"  
  
Angela was interrupted by the click of a gun. Everyone looked up to find themselves surrounded by gorillamon; all spears and guns were trained at the group.  
  
"Damn it, why the hell didn't I sense them?" Shiva asked, dropping to a fighting stance.  
  
"Because you're human. We all are." Angela replied shakily. The guardians glanced down only to find, to their horror, they were indeed human. They all began jabbing the light button on their ring. Nothing happened. The gorillamon grabbed hold of their arms to prevent them from escaping. The tired in-training digimon were thrown into cages and could only watch helplessly as Moira's henchmen captured their friends.  
  
"Damn it. She must have set up wards here. They were probably activated by a certain word or something." Griff growled as he struggled fruitlessly against the three gorillamon trying to hold him.  
  
"I bet it was that rune we said out loud. Which would be despair-"  
  
"-It's darkness-"  
  
"Enough!" Tai silenced the two. His frustration was building at being led into a trap like this. How could he break through the wards, get the digidestined back to their homes safely, get the digimon free form their cages, and escape with the prophecy all at once? Just as a plan started to prepare itself in his mind, he felt an unpleasant jolt in the pit of his stomach.  
  
"Oh, Shit"  
  
Suddenly the room temperature dropped to an ominous cold.  
  
"What's wrong Tai?" Matt asked. He was eyeing a spear held dangerously close to his head.  
  
"Moira..." Tai mumbled with a far off look in his eyes.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
GAAHHH! I'm such a dumass. I know, I know- I take too long with these things. Oh well. Thanks for the reviews! 


	12. The ProphecyII: One, Two, Two and a half...

Chapter 12  
  
Seconds later the large oak door at the hall's entrance flew open. A feminine figure cloaked in darkness spoke in a whispery voice. The light from the dungeon windows reflected off her exposed skin in an alluring fashion as she sauntered in their direction with swinging hips.  
  
"Holy hell- who is that?" Davis drooled. Kari shot him an annoyed look from where she had situated herself in T.K.'s arms.  
  
"Moira." Shiva and Angela answered dismally.  
  
Moira paced in front of the group looking quite pleased with herself.  
  
"Well, well, well. If it isn't the infamous digidestined and the digiworld's failure, junior guardians." She stopped in front of Joe and Mimi, who were being held captive by the same gorillamon. She sneered at them, "Disgusting humans. Get them out of my sight."  
  
The digidestined immediately began to struggle fruitlessly against their captives.  
  
"Wait!" The gorillamon stopped at Moira's command, "I want Tai to stay with me." She held an amused glint in her eye as though she found the situation funny while letting one of her fingers trail down the exposed flesh between her breasts.  
  
"Surprised she even got my name right this time." Tai muttered. Shiva snorted despite the pain she was feeling in her bruising arms from the strong grip of the gorillamon.  
  
Moira's black eyes flashed dangerously. Her hand shot out and grabbed Tai by the throat; finely manicured nails dug into the flesh, drawing blood.  
  
"I would think you'd be a little more grateful that I am not slaughtering your friends as we speak." She snarled. Tai glared back at her trying to ignore the pain in his neck. His head started to throb with the pressure she was applying to his throat. He could only imagine how purple his face was started to turn with the lack of blood and oxygen. It wasn't until Sora, of all people, spoke up, did she release him.  
  
"Please- stop it!" Sora cried desperately. She then clasped a hand over her mouth while mentally scolded herself for drawing attention to her. Dread washed over her as Moira steadily stepped closer to her.  
  
"You want me stop hurting Tai?" She asked silkily, twirling a strand of long red hair in her finger. Sora didn't respond. Moira smiled, "O.K., I won't hurt Tai anymore."  
  
Moira pivoted to face Matt, who had to be restrained by two gorillamon during the time Moira approached Sora.  
  
"This one belongs to you, am I right?" Moira asked Sora from over her shoulder. Moira faced the handsome blonde with an errant spark in her eye. Sora whimpered helplessly as she watched Moira lean in towards her boyfriend with parted lips...  
  
Her eyes clenched shut as Moira kissed Matt but she was unable to drown out the soft, pleasure-filled moan from her boyfriend. Moira parted from their chaste kiss leaving a trail of icy breath between their mouths. Matt's eyes fluttered opened looking blank while his face held a dreamy expression. Moira walked around behind Matt and pressed her body against his back. She raised her mouth to his ear and whispered, "Now pet, I want you to hurt Tai for me."  
  
"NO MATT DON'T!" Sora screamed at him, but her pleas fell on deaf ears.  
  
Zombie-like, Matt stalked slowly towards Tai, who remained static. The digidestined all watched in silence as their friend was manipulated. The only sound that could be heard was the measured, steady steps of Matt. Gabumon averted his eyes to the floor. The digimon had long since given up struggling for they knew they were far outnumbered as well as completely drained from their previous battle.  
  
Finally, after what seemed like eternity, Matt reached where Tai was detained by a couple of gorillamon. Without even blinking, Matt drew back his fist and thrust it into Tai's stomach. Tai grunted in pain from the blow but managed to stay standing.  
  
"Again." Moira replied sharply. This time Tai received a left hook to the jaw. His head snapped to the side and he knew that one was going to leave a mark, but it was nothing compared to some of the pain he received during training or stopping raids.  
  
'Thank you Gennai,' Tai thought dryly as Matt's fist once again landed in his stomach, 'for subjecting me to endless hours of prep-torture fun.'  
After a few more strikes, Moira appeared to be tiring of her little game. She snapped her fingers and emotion suddenly flooded back into Matt's eyes. "W-what happened?" Matt blinked a few times before realization dawned on his face, "Oh god, Tai- I'm sorry-"  
  
Refusing to open his mouth, Tai just smiled good-naturedly as though Matt did nothing more than step on his foot. However, his body felt sore and a bitter, coppery fluid lingered on his tongue.  
  
"Dungeons, now!" Moira barked at the gorillamon, who immediately began to haul the digidestined away, jabbing them with their guns and spears to make them move faster.  
  
Tai looked frantically at Shiva for a moment. She got the message. Sending a well-placed kick to her respective gorillamon right in the gut and causing him to release her, she rushed forward. Tai captured her mouth with his own and pushed his tongue forward.  
  
"STOP THIS!" Moira shrieked. The digidestined were quite shocked themselves. This was no the time for unseemly displays of emotions.  
  
Tai and Shiva were roughly pulled apart. Two gorillamon carried Shiva out the door with the rest of their captives—the whole time she had a manic grin on her face.  
  
For a moment Tai shared the same expression. That is, until it was physically wiped off his face.  
  
SMACK  
  
"DAMN!" Tai cried out, clutching his swollen cheek, "I can only take so much abuse woman!"  
  
Moira laughed haughtily at him, flinging her shining red hair over her shoulder. She leaned into Tai's stronger figure and reached her arms around his waist so they appeared to be hugging.  
  
"Careful Tai, you don't want to upset me and make me seduce you into another one of my slaves, do you? I've always found your free will kind-of sexy." She gave his ass a hard squeeze before stepping away. Tai blinked owlishly at her, thinking over what she just said, completely unaffected by her assault.  
  
"Wait- you seduced monkeys so they would follow you? ...Oh that's low."  
  
Moira turned away from Tai and pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger, feeling the beginnings of a migraine coming on.  
  
"Go! You know where I want him," she ordered her seduced monkeys. And Tai found himself being led through a different set of doors than the ones his friends went through.  
  
Their captors threw the digidestined along with three of the four guardians roughly into a large, dank cell. The floor and walls were composed of the same rough, cold stones that the rest of the castle built of.  
  
"So what the hell was that?" Sora said, standing up from the spot where she was unceremoniously thrown. She glared down at Shiva who hadn't even bothered to stand up.  
  
Shiva just looked back at Sora, somewhat offended at her acid tone. She severely disliked the girl for some reason. It wasn't just how she hurt Tai's feelings—that is not something she would hold a grudge on—it was just her general aura of possessiveness over Tai. Shiva was trained in the psychic arts and although she couldn't directly 'read someone's mind' she could almost feel what he or she thought of someone. And right now Sora was confused. Confused why Tai didn't wait for her like he said; confused why she was suddenly feeling attracted to Tai; confused at the relationship Tai and Shiva shared. Shiva could also feel jealously radiating off the girl, and it was directed towards her. Now Shiva was interested as to what Sora could possibly have against her... and the best way to find this out was to do a little research. Shiva glared up at Sora, which the girl met defiantly.  
  
'That's right girlie, you stare right back at me.' Shiva thought smugly. Unknowingly to the other girl, She mentally prodded Sora's mind, searching for anything that might provoke Sora to carry any hostile feeling towards Shiva. After a matter of second she received a flash.  
  
Angela, Sora, and Mimi stood in one of the outside, hallway balconies. Angela was ringing out her hair after a morning training session in the water.  
  
"Hmmm, I wonder how well endowed he is." Mimi said thoughtfully.  
  
"MIMI!" Sora scolded, but she was trying to hide a smile.  
  
"Very well." Angela hooted.  
  
"Hang on, how would you know?" Mimi asked accusingly.  
  
"Co-ed showering!" She answered in a singsong voice, "But if you don't believe me, you can always ask Shiva. She personally knows every inch of his body."  
  
"Ahhh!" Mimi screamed, "Oh my god, have they-?"  
  
"More than once." Angela interjected.  
  
"WHAT???" Sora shouted in disbelief. For the second time in an hour Sora felt her insides turn to ice. "I thought you said they weren't going out?"  
  
"Well they aren't, but they used to for like six months when they were thirteen. That was their first time together. Now they're just friends with benefits. They only have sex to vent frustration and stuff... or they paintball gun Gennai for that, whatever their in the mood for."  
  
"W-wait a minute. So Tai lost his virginity at only thirteen?"  
  
"Oooh! He's experienced." Mimi appeared impressed by the whole situation. She was very good at being an optimist.  
  
"Yea," Angela sighed, "But he's only had sex with a couple other cheerleaders and that's all. I, on the other hand, have screwed by man more times than I can count."  
  
Shiva broke her connection with a blink. 'So she knows,' She mused, smirking, 'good.'  
  
Shiva focused her attention back around the cell. The digidestined all seemed to be waiting for some kind of explanation. She began to wonder what they could possibly want from her when she remembered.  
  
"Oh yeah- the kissing thing right?"  
  
Sora gave an uncharacteristic sneer, which roused a strange look from her boyfriend.  
  
Shiva smiled coyly at them while pushing something hard and shiny between her teeth.  
  
"Is that-" Kari began. Shiva grinned even more and spat the rest of the key out of her mouth and into the palm of her hand.  
  
"Yep. Our ticket out of here."  
  
Griff broke into laughter, "So Tai had it in his mouth!"  
  
Several of the digidestined burst out laughing at this.  
  
"What I want to know," said Ken thoughtfully, "is how he got it in the first place."  
  
"Oh, he carries a locksmith in his pants." said Angela seriously. Her face then broke into a manic grin, "A large locksmith..."  
  
Griff made a displeased noise in his throat.  
  
"Oh, stop whining, or I'll dump you for Tai," sniffed Angela as she put her hands on her hips.  
  
"Oh no you won't!" Shiva said dangerously. Angela looked about ready to take up the challenge for another shouting contest with Shiva when she was cut off.  
  
"Alright! Tai has a big dick! Can we open the door now?" Cody yelled. A ringing silence followed his vocalizations as everyone once again gaped at the youngest member of the digidestined.  
  
"CODY!" Yolie, Angela, and Sora yelled at once. Shiva strode toward the cell door as she and Mimi, and most of the guys tried to make their laughter as discreet as possible.  
  
The door swung open moments later, the key still protruding from the lock. Everyone remained in the cell, staring at the route to freedom.  
  
"Well, are we going or not?" Davis asked impatiently a good thirty seconds later.  
  
"Where will we go?" said Angela, "You guys don't have your digimon and we don't know how far Moira has set the wards. We're in quite a predicament"  
  
"Well, then obviously we find the digimon—discreetly, might I add—and then find our way out of the castle and away from the wards using the digimons' protection." Davis replied annoyed, "or would you rather have Shiva lock the door again."  
  
Everyone stood shocked, staring at Davis, trying to find something wrong with his plan. Yolie growled and whacked Izzy upside the head.  
  
"Why didn't you think of that? Now Davis sounds more intelligent than me!"  
  
"Ow..." Izzy whimpered, clutching his head.  
  
"What about Tai?" Matt asked, "We can't leave him here."  
  
"Sure we can!" Griff said joyously.  
  
Mimi looked at him alarmed.  
  
"What? No we can't!"  
  
"He'll be fine!" Griff continued, waving his hand carelessly, "Let's go!"  
  
He casually walked out of the cell followed dutifully by Angela and the reluctant digidestined while Shiva brought up the rear. The group crept silently out of the dungeons and into a large, vacant, stone corridor.  
  
"Shiva, can you sense any life forces around here?" Angela whispered, her voice breaking the horrible silence.  
  
"Angela — I'm human!"  
  
"I know! But you could see auras and shit before you knew you were a demon!"  
  
"Barely," Shiva muttered.  
  
"Just try!" Griff hissed.  
  
She harrumphed and proceeded to scan the area for any nearby auras that would represent the digimon. Finally she detected a faint blue glow tinged with some red off in the distance to her right.  
  
"Through a door on the right—around that corner. There's guards in there too."  
  
Kari stared at her disbelievingly.  
  
"I thought you just said you could barely do it?"  
  
"I did." Shiva replied starkly.  
  
"But-"  
  
"Just drop it." T.K. muttered, grabbing her arm gently and leading her to where the rest of the digidestined had already headed. Sure enough, just around the corner there was a rotted oak door to the right that hung slightly ajar. The group stopped in front of it, unsure of how they were going to fight off the guards that were most likely in there. Matt turned to face the group as if asking for suggestions.  
  
Before anyone could do anything, Griff strode past him and through the door. Shiva was only seconds behind him followed by Angela. The digidestined all blinked simultaneously at the now swinging door.  
  
"What the hell do they think they're doing?" Cody asked no one in particular. Matt shrugged indifferently and reached for the door, deciding to follow them in. Just as he was about to push forward a scream emitted from the room. Matt sprang back from the door, crashing into Joe.  
  
"MATT!" Joe wailed, rubbing his nose. Matt was too busy making sure his hair was still in place to apologize.  
  
"He's sorry," Sora replied, shaking her head at her boyfriend. The door creaked and they all looked up to see Angela poke her head out.  
  
"You can come in now." She replied sweetly before disappearing though the door in a whirl of blonde curls. The digidestined followed uncertainly.  
  
Inside was another plain stone room; there was a cell much like the one they were in. Many of the digimon were still unconscious while the rest were groggily waking.  
  
"Alright!" Davis shouted happily, rushing to the cell, "hurry up Shiva and open the cell!"  
  
"Huh? Why me?" She asked bewilderedly.  
  
"'Cause you have the key!" he cried impatiently. Shiva stared at him a few seconds longer.  
  
"What key?"  
  
"WHAT!" Everyone yelled. Angela slapped her hand on her forehead.  
  
"Shiiiiiivaaaa..."  
  
"Oh this key!" she cried devilishly, whipping out a key from her bra. Everyone sweat dropped. Shiva just laughed mirthfully and unlocked the cell door.  
  
The digidestined all rushed to their digimon and proceeded to wake them all up.  
  
"Here we go with the hugging again," Griff muttered. Angela whacked him upside the head.  
  
"Wait a minute," Izzy said as he walked out of the cell holding a bleary Tentomon in his arms, "What happened to the guards?"  
  
"You have to crawl before you can walk..." Angela said sagely.  
  
"You learned to fight as humans before as your natural selves?" Izzy replied dully.  
  
"Oh! Touché!"  
  
"Alright, now we can get Tai," said Matt, as he made sure everyone was with their respective partner.  
  
"I told you before, we're leaving him." Griff replied calmly. He stuck his head out the doorway to make sure the coast was clear.  
  
"I am not leaving him!"  
  
Griff rolled his eyes before pulling his head back into the room.  
  
"For the last time- he'll be fine. Look, I know you're his friend and you have the crest of friendship, but the chances of finding Tai and not getting caught are slim to none. Tai can take care of himself. Trust me, he's been in worse situations than this before. What we have to worry about now is ourselves."  
  
Matt bit his lip. He couldn't help but feel he was abandoning his friend.  
  
Angela noticed his uncertainty.  
  
"Don't worry about him alright? He'll be back at home maybe a day or two at the most after us. If not we'll go back and rescue him."  
  
"Fine," Matt mumbled reluctantly. Sora put a supportive arm around his waist making him smile a little, "Okay gang, we're leaving."  
  
The group was on the move again, this time to the exit. The traveling sped up as digimon regained more and more of their energy. They retraced the steps of the gorillamon that took them to the cells, eventually making it to the room where they previously battled for the prophecy.  
  
"Should we stop and get the prophecy?" Kari whispered. Griff nodded.  
  
"We may not get another chance like this again with no guards. There are no guards, right Shiva?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"See—what? Yes?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"There are?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"You heard me."  
  
"Woman, give me a strait answer."  
  
"No."  
  
"Yes!"  
  
"'No' meaning there are NO guards, dumass."  
  
"Gotcha. Ok — I need one of the digimon to run out there and grab the prophecy real quick just to be sure. Everyone else will be hiding back here waiting for an attack."  
  
"Oh that won't be necessary," Mimi said easily, "Palmon will take care of it for us."  
  
The plant digimon threw them a proud smile before drawing her arms over her head to prepare for an attack.  
  
"Poison Ivy!" Vines flew through the empty room and cracked at the pedestal. They soon returned empty. Palmon blinked sheepishly at the group.  
  
"Uh... there's nothing there."  
  
"Damn—I knew that was too easy," Griff swore.  
  
Angela nodded at Griff before realizing something.  
  
"Wait a minute, Shiva, don't you have some extent of telekinetic powers as a human?"  
  
"Um, yes?"  
  
"Then why didn't you just get the prophecy that way?"  
  
"Well, there was no prophecy anyway."  
  
"That's not the point—you didn't even try!"  
  
"No one asked me to!"  
  
"SHIVA-"  
  
"Shut up! Let's just get out of here!" Joe cried nervously. Davis nodded in agreement.  
  
"Right– Kari, WHAT are those???"  
  
Kari looked innocently down at the handcuffs in her hands. T.K., glancing over her shoulder, managed to look slightly apprehensive and excited at the same time.  
  
"Uh, souvenirs?"  
  
"Where did you get those?"  
  
"Off one of the guards they knocked out"  
  
"But why... ya know what? I don't wanna know. Let's go."  
  
"I think we should all run for the gates incase they replaced the outer guards we took out earlier," Angela suggested.  
  
"Are any of you guys strong enough to digivolve to make the trip to the portal a little easier? Or do you need food?" Ken asked the digimon.  
  
"We need food" They all replied automatically. Ken rolled his eyes and muttered, "figures."  
  
"Looks like we're running then." Davis concluded, "On three, we head to the gates. One... two... two and a half!!"  
  
Everyone started outside and then stopped with a jerk.  
  
"DAVIS!"  
  
"Just go!" he laughed.  
  
They ran past the bodies of devidramon to the gates of Bastion Hall with Davis' raucous laughter echoing throughout the grounds.  
  
Moira paced back and forth in her study chamber, wringing her hands and questioning her actions. What was she doing? He's not Taro. He's the enemy he should be locked away in the dungeon with the rest of them.  
  
So why the hell did she just have him sent to her bedroom!?  
  
Moira sat down in a plush, black velvet chair and rested her head in her hands. The memory of Tai kissing the half-demon flashed in her mind.  
  
"I'm so confused," She moaned.  
  
"What's there to be confused about?" a chilling voice hissed from the flickering fire besides her. Moira, far too used to this by now, just glared at the seemingly innocent flames.  
  
"Go away, I have no time for you," she snapped.  
  
The fire roared in indignation.  
  
"Don't speak to me in that manner you ungrateful little wench! If it weren't for me you would still be sealed in hell."  
  
Moira looked away from the fire, her eyes filling with pain.  
  
"How do I know I'm doing the right thing?" she asked the bodiless voice.  
  
"How can you ask such a thing? Don't you remember what she did to you? All the pain and suffering you had to endure while you're friend died one by one. While your mate was killed?"  
  
Moira cringed.  
  
"But why should I do this? How will taking over the world help me destroy her?"  
  
"I think you are forgetting where your loyalties lay. To forget the pain you must kill. Kill anyone that gets in your way, especially the guardians. Once they are out of the way and the old one falls nothing will stop you from ruling the digital world and you will get the respect you deserve."  
  
"But I don't want to kill anymore! I'm tired of it!" Moira growled at the flames. Her features suddenly softened as she continued in a voice barely audible, "I just want him back." And for the first time in over a thousand years, a single tear slid from her black eye, and froze against her cheek.  
  
"YOU WON'T GET HIM BACK BECAUSE HE'S DEAD!" The voiced screeched, snapping her attention back to the fireplace. The voice continued, this time much calmer and colder.  
  
"The only thing you can do now is get your revenge; destroy her life as she destroyed yours. You were given another chance- use it!"  
  
"You're right-," she murmured in a deadly whisper, her common sense returning, "I know. I'll kill them- starting with the demi-god."  
  
Twenty minutes after Tai was separated from his friends he found himself sitting comfortably in a luxurious, black leather recliner that suited colors of the rugs, furniture and canopy bed of the room. He had honestly no clue why he stayed where he was. The guard left him alone in the cambion's room and nothing was stopping him from getting up and walking his half-breed buns-of-steel out those huge oak doors. Well, there was the fact that he was an unarmed, exhausted, hormonal, teenage human with a deranged, yet sexy, seductress on the loose. But that could be overlooked.  
  
A faint pattering of bare feet approached the door, alerted him of the woman in question's presence. She gracefully entered the room and closed the door behind her with a soft click. The dim lighting made her appear more enticing than ever to Tai. Without sparing him a glance, Moira strolled across the room in a business like manner and placed something heavy on a richly furnished dresser. With a flip of her long red tresses and a twitch of the small demonic wings on her back she turned to face him.  
  
He looked different to her as a human; his hair was much shorter and his eyes had dulled to a chocolaty brown. However, there was still that unmistakable presence of Taro. Moira mentally berated herself for her train of thought. This was no time to be thinking of him. She had to focus on the task on hand. She had to kill Tai before she lost control of herself again. She lowered her head in a predatory manner and turned her dark gaze on him. Striding forward she drew an ice dagger out of thin air.  
  
Tai, who remained seated upon her entrance slowly stood as she stalked toward him. For every step backwards he took, she took two forward. The distance between them was shortening at an alarming rate.  
  
"You don't want to be doing that." Tai said warily as he eyed the rising dagger, "There will be a lot of girls who would be disappointed..."  
  
"You don't know what I want." She hissed, black eyes flashing. The dagger descended on him, only to be stopped by his hand wrapped around her wrist. They struggled for a moment and with her demonic heritage giving an advantage over Tai's weakened state, the dagger slowly progressed to his throat. Having her close to him stirred something within his chest. He knew his options were limited. His logic was getting fuzzy as a million thoughts as to how to escape the castle alive and have the prophecy as well raced around in his mind. Tai's breathing grew shallow as her tantalizing scent reached his senses. Her face was inches away from his, begging to be kissed. Not quite thinking clearly and reaching a desperate state, Tai made a decision.  
  
"You want Taro," her struggling lessened. The dagger moved a small distance away from his neck; "You can have him... for tonight."  
  
Having spoken them, the full meaning of his words became comprehensible to both their ears and both knew it would be something they would regret later on, but a stronger force than either of them won over. They were pulled into another captivatingly heated kiss. Neither Moira nor Tai had realized the bloodless ice dagger lie feet away from them on the floor, forgotten and melting.  
  
"Don't you dare—try that seductive—shit on me," Tai whispered hoarsely into her mouth. He broke away for a moment as Moira tore his shirt over his head. Her hands immediately flew to his chest, running her fingers over the hardened muscles from intense training. Groaning with pleasure from her touch, Tai chose this moment to attack her deliciously exposed neck; nipping, biting, sucking—undoubtedly marking the once perfectly unblemished skin.  
  
"Wouldn't dream of it," Moira moaned with half lidded eyes. She couldn't understand the effect this man had on her but at that moment she didn't care. She was dimly aware of his hands roaming along her body, pealing away the garb. Somewhere in her mind she knew she was supposed to do something. Was it killing him? No. Not with those heavily panting lips racing across her collarbone.  
  
The two fell onto the blood red velvet bed, Tai on top of Moira, letting their instincts take over for the better part of the night.  
  
Well, that took longer than I thought. Lo siento!  
  
I think it's about time to pick a girl for Tai to stick with, don't you? The dirty little man is gunna get a disease at the rate he's going!  
  
However, I can't decide on who to land him with – Moira, Shiva, Sora, or possibly someone completely unexpected? 


	13. Returning home: Fangs really are nice, ...

Chapter 13  
  
A stream of morning light flowed through the room and landed on the eyes of a rousing young man. Tai sighed into his pillow as he rolled over on his side. Griff just had to leave the windows open every morning, didn't he? Tai cracked an eye open to see what time it was only to find a blank stonewall instead of the usual blue, painted wooden one. Both of his eyes snapped open as he realized he wasn't in his room. As he slowly lifted himself into a sitting position the covers slid form his bare chest, drawing his attention to his nakedness. Suddenly, the activities of the night before came racing back to him so fast he almost felt ill. Peeking over his shoulder confirmed his fears; Moira lay next to him sleeping, equally as naked.  
  
'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit...' Tai thought panicking, 'Gennai is going to kill me... aargh... forget Gennai—Shiva's going to kill me!'  
  
Slowly, taking care not to wake the other occupant of the bed, Tai swung his legs over the edge of the mattress. He glanced over his shoulder after he shakily stood up from the bed to make sure Moira was still asleep. A few strands of her crimson locks fell over her face and her features lost their usual impious look, leaving her looking more innocent (and quite appealing to him). He knew he had to leave, but watching her sleep so peacefully left him yearning to get back in bed with her, cradle her to his chest, and run his fingers through her long, soft hair.  
  
'No! Bad Tai!'  
  
Tai shook all inner 'Taro' thoughts from his mind as he pulled on his discarded boxers that were thrown on the floor. He then went in search of the kaki pants he was wearing as a human and the dark blue t-shirt. After running his hand through his hair he realized, with amusement, that his hair tie had come out sometime during the night and was most likely somewhere lost in the ruffled bed sheets. He glanced back at the sleeping beauty and quickly erased any thoughts of attempting to search for it after picturing how she would react to being woken up. Nope, not worth the risk.  
  
He was just preparing to leave he briefly remembered the heavy object that Moira placed on the dresser the night before. Curiosity getting the better of him, Tai quietly tiptoed over to the bureau for a peek. His eyes widened as the unknown object turned out to be none other than the prophecy. This was too easy. Tai stole another glance at Moira to make sure she was still asleep before carefully lifting it from its resting place and creeping towards the door.  
  
Biting his lip Tai slowly opened the door, just enough for him to slip through. Once on the other side he shut it just as slowly, hoping against hope it wouldn't-  
  
CREEEAAAAK  
  
The squelching noise bounced along the stonewalls, echoing and making it ten times as loud. Without even looking to see if anyone was disturbed by it, Tai shut the door the rest of the way and sprinted towards the exit. As he raced down the halls he noticed that the usual guards were not at their posts and figured it must have been too early in the morning be on duty. In about five minutes flat Tai found himself at the main doors at which he entered. After one last glance around him to ensure his lack of company, he stepped outside.  
  
The rising sun was the first thing that Tai saw after he closed the massive, yet silent, door behind him. Hovering his left hand over his eyes to shade them while cradling the prophesy in his right, Tai scanned the area for any resistance to his departure. He smiled in satisfaction as he strode across the property of Bastion hall without any interference. This may be too easy—but he wasn't going to complain. He knew he looked like hell. His mussed hair was down from its usual ponytail, his clothes were wrinkled and haphazard, he was still sore from the abuse he took from Matt the previous day (since his human body didn't allow him to heal quickly), and he was cold as hell!  
  
His train of thought led his trek through the snow right to the portal. Tai let out a chilly breath of air.  
  
'Leave it to Moira to pick out a lair in a frigid setting.' Tai thought rolling his eyes. 'Of course last night she was anything but cold.'  
  
He allowed himself one self-satisfied smirk before he stepped into the portal bound for his home.  
  
BREAK  
  
To put it lightly, Gennai was not happy about their return without the prophecy, especially when he heard the guardians' excuses as to why they couldn't fight.  
  
"What do you mean you were stuck as humans?" Gennai snapped as he stared down three of his four successors.  
  
"She put up bloody wards! They turned us into humans!" Griff answered back angrily. Angela put a soothing hand on his arm to keep his temper in check.  
  
"So why didn't you take off the damn rings?" Gennai said exasperatedly as if it were the most obvious answer in the world.  
  
"What the hell does this have to do with the rings?"  
  
"They're the only things that keep you human. No wards can keep you from your natural selves!"  
  
"Well you're the dumbass who didn't explain the inner workings of these bitches!" Shiva said scowling at him and not one to be left out of an argument.  
  
"Don't take that tone with me young lady—"  
  
Angela, seemingly oblivious from the controversy around her began mumbling logic, "She must have found out about our rings... and used the wards to turn them against us..."  
  
Gennai took a deep breath to calm his nerves before continuing slowly.  
  
"Yes, she did. All we can do now is wait and hope Tai makes it out of this okay. I'm going to check on the digidestined."  
  
When first arriving at the coliseum, the Guardians and Gennai had made a show of displaying confidence in Tai's abilities to make it out of his captured state while the digidestined were in their presence. They shooed the lot off to guest rooms where they would undoubtedly spend the rest of the night in an uneasy slumber wondering about their former leader. But that confidence was gone the moment the digidestined left the room.  
  
As soon as Gennai left Shiva jumped from her seat at the kitchen table and began pacing the room.  
  
"I just don't like this... leaving him there." Shiva said frowning.  
  
"Me too, but I know Tai—he's smart. If anyone can make it out of this it's him. And I know that he'll take advantage of this strange connection between him, Taro and Moira and use it to his advantage."  
  
"That's what I'm afraid of—oh! —If only we had taken off the rings!" Shiva continued, completely ignoring Griff, "At least then Tai wouldn't be stuck there with that—that—bitch!"  
  
"Look Shiva, Tai can make it out of this alive-" Angela started.  
  
"-Oh I know he'll make it out alive it's the means I'm worried about!"  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"You don't get it, do you?" Shiva half yelled, finally looking them in the eye, "Why do you think he has such a hard time controlling himself around her—and vise versa? It's because of Taro! It's because of Taro and Moira's relationship before everything happened. They were mated!"  
  
Griff looked at her confused, "What do you mean mated? Like as in married? What the hell does this have to do with Tai's fierce Moira- jumping routine?"  
  
"It's a... uh... demon thing," Shiva said absently.  
  
"Well? You wanna explain it to us?" Angela asked impatiently. Shiva wore a pained expression on her face as if stating she'd rather not. But one look at the resolute stares she was receiving from her friends and she knew she had no choice in the matter.  
  
"okay.... well... when a demon chooses a mate, regardless of their lineage, their souls become bonded and as long as one of them lives the other will as well. That's how demons can choose human mates, not that many would. And if one dies the other will suffer for the rest of their life. They'll sort of feel incomplete and shortly after they'll die as well. And once they choose a mate, they're stuck with them forever. There's no such thing as a divorce with demons." Shiva shuddered as though the mere thought of being stuck with someone for the rest of his or her life was unspeakable.  
  
"But your demon too! Does that mean you can only choose one mate for the rest of your life?" Asked Angela aghast. She knew Shiva was about as indecisive about men as Tai was about women.  
  
"Pshh—hunny- that's why I have a human side. I have the option of marriage or mating."  
  
"Wait! Hold up a minute. So you're saying Moira's a demon?" Griff asked completely confused, "I thought she was a cambion?"  
  
"A cambion is a demon! Remember? She's half succubus and half ice spirit?" Angela informed her boyfriend.  
  
"Uh- right..." Griff said. Clearly he had not remembered. Angela rolled her eyes and muttered 'men' before looking expectantly at Shiva.  
  
"So, explain how Tai got dragged into this."  
  
"Oh yes, well Moira and Taro were mated so when Taro was killed Moira suffered a lot, obviously. And when she was sealed away she was sort of frozen in time and space, that's why she didn't die. As soon as she was reawakened, and Taro's soul was reborn, they were still bonded. Now Tai has the reincarnated soul of Taro so..."  
  
"...It's almost as if Tai and Moira were mated. Tai's soul was bound to Moira's at birth." Angela concluded, "Oh, poor Tai, no wonder he can't control himself around her."  
  
"Damn..." was Griff's only input.  
  
"Oh my god! But don't we have to kill Moira at some point? Won't that end up killing Tai as well?" Asked Angela as she began to panic.  
  
"Heavens no girl," stated Gennai from the doorway. The three guardians turned to look at him. "But Taro's spirit will die away within him; it will still cause him pain."  
  
"How long will the pain last?" Griff asked concerned. Gennai sighed; his age showing as he warily made his way to the table and lowered himself into a chair.  
  
"To tell you the truth I don't know. It will be more of an emotional pain I can tell you that. That feeling of incompleteness which Shiva described to be more exact. For all I know it may linger within him for the rest of his life."  
  
"This isn't fair." Shiva grumbled moodily.  
  
"No, it's not fair, but life's not fair now is it?"  
  
BREAK  
  
Sora woke up from a restless sleep early in the morning. It took her awhile to register where she was. After remembering the events that took place yesterday she felt her chest constrict with anxiety. They had left Tai there, completely unprotected and alone. She remembered the long hours she, Yolie and Mimi spend consoling a sobbing Kari with tears of their own. Looking around she noticed the other girls were still in their beds asleep with the exception of Angela and Shiva. She looked at the clock to see it flashing 6:17 at her in glowing, red letters. After rubbing the sleep out of her eyes she pulled herself out of bed and headed to the bathroom.  
  
Twenty minutes later she came out fully dressed and ready to start the day. She left the room just as Kari was starting to stir. She walked down the deserted hallways, following the scent of brewing coffee to the kitchen. Sora hoped it was Gennai in the kitchen because she was hoping to talk to him.  
  
Much to her disappointment it was the Shiva girl—not Gennai—who was bustling about the kitchen, pulling out mugs from the cabinet.  
  
"Shiva-" Sora started but was silenced when Shiva turned around and put a finger to her lips while frantically pointing towards the table. There, Angela was sitting forwards in one of the chairs with her head in her arms sleeping. Leaning back, sleeping in the chair next to her was Griff; his mouth was open and a little bit of drool was seeping in the corner of his mouth. Both were still in their wrinkled clothes from yesterday.  
  
"Do you need help?" Sora continued her sentence in a whisper. Shiva shook her head and pointed the table, demonstrating that she should seat herself. Sora did so and a few minutes later Shiva brought over a mug of coffee and set it in front of her before taking a seat herself.  
  
"Did you guys stay up here waiting for Tai?" Sora whispered trying to make small talk. Shiva nodded and sipped her coffee.  
  
"I didn't sleep much either. Do you think he's ok?"  
  
Shiva regarded her for a moment.  
  
"He'll survive." She replied quietly. There was something ominous about the way she said it that made Sora want to push the subject further but before she could do so Shiva began talking.  
  
"It won't work between you two."  
  
The abrupt statement left Sora blinking for a moment.  
  
"I don't understand."  
  
"You and Tai. It would never work out."  
  
"I don't want—"  
  
"But you're thinking about it."  
  
Sora remained silent. The truth was, she kept wondering how things would have been if she had chose Tai. Maybe she would have been happier with him than with Matt.  
  
"Tai is not how you think he is. You're looking for a long relationship; a more personal one. Tai couldn't give you that. He's used to flings and one night stands. And he has too many 'friends with benefits' if you know what I mean."  
  
Sora smiled as she realized that she didn't make a mistake after all. She would have been happier with Matt.  
  
"So, I chose right when I chose Matt over Tai that Christmas?" she asked, wanting confirmation.  
  
"Well, I don't know about that..."  
  
"But you said it wouldn't work-"  
  
"-it wouldn't work now, back then Tai was a different person."  
  
The smile fell off Sora's face.  
  
"Wait, are you saying that Tai and I could have been happy together?"  
  
"It's always a possibility." Shiva replied serenely.  
  
"Well, maybe I can help bring out the old Tai? You know, give us another chance." Sora asked hopefully.  
  
Shiva smirked. "Pshh, not gunna happen while I'm around."  
  
Sora scowled at the girl across from her, almost unable to believe the nerve she possessed. She was stealing her best friend from her. It was Shiva who had changed him and Sora had every intention of telling her to back off.  
  
"Hey."  
  
Both girls looked up to the doorway where Matt stood. He walked into the kitchen and put his hands on both of Sora's shoulders from behind. Sora looked up at him innocently.  
  
"Hey hunny" Sora beamed, hoping he didn't hear any of the previous conversation. She looked across the table to see Shiva giving her a knowing look. She got up from the table and came back a second later with three other mugs. One she handed to Matt and the other two she placed in front of Angela and Griff, who were stirring.  
  
"You sleep o.k.?" she asked him.  
  
"No, I'm just too worried about Tai."  
  
"Us too."  
  
Davis, Yolie, Cody, Izzy and Ken walked into the kitchen. A couple seconds later Mimi walked in with an arm around a red-eyed Kari.  
  
"Damn you people..." Shiva grumbled as she went to get even more mugs. It took a couple of trips but she managed to bring seven cups of steaming hot coffee over to the table.  
  
"T-tai's still not here?" Kari asked mournfully. Mimi rubbed her back soothingly.  
  
"I'm afraid not." Angela replied. Kari's eyes filled up with tears again just as Joe walked into the room with his nose in a book closely followed by T.K.. As soon as T.K. saw Kari's sobbing form he rushed to her side. Kari threw herself in his arms and began crying into his chest. Everyone at the table gave her sympathetic looks.  
  
"Jeeze, at the rate we're going we're going to have to start using the decaf." Shiva said disbelievingly as she poured two more cups of coffee.  
  
"Well I hope you have enough for one more cup."  
  
Every head in the kitchen jerked towards the door where a lean figure rested against the frame. His clothes were crinkled and damp from trudging through the snow and his face was lined with weariness. Dark, unruly locks fell over his chocolate, jovial eyes and brushed down to his shoulders. He cast them a rogue smile, drawing attention to the dark stubble coating his jaw.  
  
"Hey Gennai—I left you a present in your room." Gennai, who had been walking past him from behind, gave him a suspicious look and proceeded to his room.  
  
"TAI!" Kari screamed. She sprang from her chair and flew at her brother. Tai wrapped his arms around her sobbing form, thoroughly confused.  
  
"Hey, what's all this?" he asked her quietly ignoring the questions of 'what happened?' and 'are you okay?' from his other friends.  
  
"I thought you were hurt or d-dead." Kari choked out.  
  
"DEAD?" Tai asked in astonishment, "who told you that?"  
  
He automatically glared at Shiva who mustered the most wide eyed, innocent look she could. Kari sniffed and pulled away from him.  
  
"No one, I just didn't know what to think. You were gone all night..."  
  
Tai gulped and looked to the rest of the digidestined. From the hallway a faint cry of 'YES' could be heard form Gennai's room. No one seemed to take note of it.  
  
"Yea Tai, just what took you so long anyways?" Ken inquired with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"Well, it's funny that you mention that...I...uh..." Tai began to stutter as he nervously ran a hand through his hair.  
  
"SCRATCHIES!" Shiva screamed as she leaped upon Tai and began rubbing his chin. Not for the first time in his life, Tai was thankful Shiva was so eccentric. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Griff, Angela and many of the digidestined laughing at her behavior.  
  
"Alright Shiva, I gotta go take a shower." Tai said.  
  
Shiva stopped rubbing his face, looked at him for a moment, and gave him a wicked grin. She glanced back at the crowed behind her deviously.  
  
"Oh, here she goes..." Griff said, reading the warning signs.  
  
Shiva suddenly jumped up and wrapped her legs around Tai's waist forcing him to support her by grabbing her thighs.  
  
"That's because you got real dirty last night, didn't you?" Shiva whispered huskily in his ear. She leaned in and crushed her mouth against his. Tai was far too used to this by now and simply kissed her back. Seconds later Shiva hopped down and playfully shoved him in the direction of the showers. Tai walked down the hallway suddenly realizing he didn't care what his friends thought of him after that.  
  
Laughing, Shiva turned to face the stunned expressions of the digidestined. She delightedly noted the scowl on Sora's face.  
  
"Man he's a good kisser" she breathed, adding insult to injury.  
  
BREAK  
  
After Tai got cleaned up the digidestined decided to stay a couple of more hours before they returned home. They all sat comfortably in the living room with separate discussions going on. On one couch were T.K., Kari (Kari in his lap), Cody and Davis having their own conversation. Across from them were Ken and Izzy in separate armchairs talking about god- knows-what. Angela, Mimi, and Yolie were sitting on a couch discussing boys. Sora was also a part of this conversation although she was sitting on an adjacent couch holding hands with Matt. Also on this couch was Tai with Shiva sitting on his lap sideways, randomly kicking her legs in the air like a showgirl; she seemed absolutely fascinated with her legs (as was Tai). Across from them Joe had an open book in his lap, but was disregarding his studying in favor of conversation. Comfortably reclining in a chair next to him was Griff who had taken it upon himself to fill Tai in on what he missed while he was with Moira. At the moment he was trying to describe how they had to get around a random mammothmon without drawing its unwanted attention.  
  
"...So dumbass (he gestured to Shiva) goes running in the wrong direction. We're running to the forest- following the plan—and we're all like 'yea, we're good'—we turn around, and Shiva—hehehe—Shiva's half way across the God damn plane—hahahahaha—running like mad—HAHAHAHA—" Griff couldn't talk anymore due to depletion of oxygen. Shiva sat on the couch, head in hands, shaking in dastardly laughter.  
  
Matt, grinning, decided to take over.  
  
"So Angela just grabs a gun from Griff's belt, aims it at this running figure in the distance and BAM! Down she goes..."  
  
Griff, Matt, Joe and Tai all had tears in their eyes as they roared with laughter. This drew the attention of the other occupants of the room.  
  
Shiva mock scowled at Angela.  
  
"I can't believe you shot me."  
  
Angela rolled her eyes, "You're the one who can't follow directions."  
  
"Yes, well...I have A.D.D." Shiva replied lamely.  
  
"We are /all/ well aware of that." A voice said from behind her. Shiva turned in Tai's lap and tried to yank at his ponytail, but Tai grabbed her arms and leaned his head back. Frustrated, Shiva settled for whipping her head around and whacking him in the face with her hair, which she had left down. Tai appeared a little dazed for a moment. He gave her a calculating look before leaning in and smelling her hair.  
  
"Mmm, new shampoo?"  
  
Shiva blinked at him.  
  
"Yea, how'd you know?"  
  
"You smell like strawberries. You normally smell like cocoanuts." Tai said knowingly.  
  
"See," Shiva gave him a sardonic smile, "that's why I keep you around, to complement my odor."  
  
"I never said I liked it" Tai replied smartly.  
  
"You didn't need too, I know you love strawberries."  
  
"Ah, my secret weakness is out." Tai grinned, "In that case I may just have to confiscate that shampoo next shower."  
  
"Since when were you interested in ladies hygiene products, Tai?" Matt snickered from besides him. Tai gave him a weird look.  
  
"Why would I be looking at her hygiene products when there's a naked girl in front of me?"  
  
The guys all roared with laughter again. Angela shook her head in disgust.  
  
"Chauvinistic pigs. All of them."  
  
Mimi, Yolie, and Sora all nodded dolefully.  
  
BREAK  
  
"Bye Tai!" Kari threw her arms around her older brother, "please visit soon, mom really misses you."  
  
"Yea, alright." Tai said gruffly, not really knowing when he'd find the time to do this. He loved his sister dearly but the digital world and its inhabitant's safety was first priority for a guardian.  
  
The digidestined were gathered in the control room saying their good- byes to the hosts of the coliseum.  
  
"I'm telling you, pineapple will naturally moisturize you skin" Mimi was telling Angela as the girls all exchanged hugs.  
  
"Adios niños!" Shiva sang as she threw her arms around T.K. and Davis' shoulders. T.K. looked a bit uncomfortable while Davis laughed.  
  
One by one the digidestined disappeared into the portal after hugs and handshakes. Tai was especially shocked when Sora walked up to him and gave him a hug.  
  
"Take care of yourself, ok?" Shiva whispered. Tai, blushing, only managed to nod. His ears picked up a low growl from where Shiva was standing.  
  
Sora let go of him and stepped into the portal. The blue light ended as the last of the digidestined left the digital world.  
  
"Finally..." Griff murmured as he grabbed a giggling Angela's arm and pulled her into a lingering kiss. As much as he enjoyed the guests' company, Griff felt he was in serious need of some 'alone time' with his girlfriend.  
  
"OUT!" Gennai commanded while pointing at the door as he had done many times before. The couple all but ran out of the room and strait into the boy's bedroom.  
  
"Come on." Shiva remarked. She grabbed Tai's hand and pulled him towards her and Angela's room.  
  
BREAK  
  
As soon as they were both in the room Shiva shut the door behind her and turned to face Tai, who had seated himself on the closest bed to her.  
  
"Tai hunny, I think we need to have a little tête-à-tête, if you know what I mean."  
  
"Look if this is about that hug Sora gave me—" Tai started. Shiva burst out laughing, shaking her head.  
  
"No, no, this has nothing to with her, although, now that you mention it..."  
  
"Uh, let's get back to this 'tête-à-tête' shall we?"  
  
The last thing Tai needed was to hear all the reason's Shiva wanted Tai to stay away from Sora.  
  
"So," Shiva said conversationally, "How was she?"  
  
'Always to the point, this one' Tai thought.  
  
"Pretty damn good actually." He answered just as casually.  
  
"Oh yeah?" Shiva was examining her fingernails now, "better than me?"  
Tai rolled his eyes.  
  
"Don't worry. I have yet to meet anyone better than you." Shiva raised an eyebrow at him.  
  
"Are you trying to flatter me?"  
  
Tai sighed and shook his head.  
  
"No, I'm serious. Last night was great and all, but Moira totally thought I was Taro."  
  
"Wait... You mean the whole night, she actually thought she was having sex with Taro?!"  
  
"Well, it /was/ his name she was screaming."  
  
Shiva's eyes threatened to pop out of her head.  
  
"She... WHAT? You let her get away with that?"  
  
"Hey, I promised her Taro, and Taro's what she got."  
  
Shiva gave a small laugh at that.  
  
"Sounds like she did."  
  
"And besides you there were just those cheerleaders and those were just flings, you know that."  
  
"So that makes me the best right?" Shiva asked skeptically.  
  
"Yep."  
  
"What about Sora?"  
  
Tai blinked at her, "what do you mean? I've never even kissed her, let alone had sex with her. Although there was that one time in the sandbox..."  
  
"That's not what I mean! I meant... I mean... arrgh!"  
  
"Don't strain yourself!" Tai joked. Shiva glared at him.  
  
"Sora wants you now." She said bluntly.  
  
Tai almost fell off the bed.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean she was thinking about breaking up with Matt to get with you."  
  
Tai could tell Shiva wasn't lying. Although he hated to admit it, Sora was not the same girl she was when he wanted a relationship with her.  
  
"Well she's a bit late now isn't she?" Tai said coolly. Shiva beamed.  
  
"So you're over her then?"  
  
"You know... I think I am." Tai said confidently.  
  
"Oh good. You had me worried that you'd get with her and forget all about little old me."  
  
"I would never." Tai gasped dramatically, throwing a hand over his heart. "Besides, she's too skinny for me anyway."  
  
"Oh? Are you saying I'm fat?" Shiva laughed.  
  
"No. Actually I think you're quite... wholesome." He moved his hands downwards in a wavelike motion, indicating her curves. Shiva laughed again.  
  
Tai sobered up and looked at Shiva. Shiva stopped laughing as she noticed him staring at him.  
  
"What?" she asked smiling.  
  
"Can you... turn into you're demon form for me?" Shiva regarded him for a moment before complying. Tai found himself captivated by her mysterious black eyes and for the first time saw them as anything but dark. They seemed to possess a knowing sparkle. She was really quite pretty like this, Tai realized as he gazed at her. The tattoos gave her a somewhat exotic appearance, and her appealing black hair lie softly against her shoulders. Tai bit his lip as his eyes traveled to Shiva's mouth; the tips of her ivory fangs poking out.  
  
He looked back up to her eyes while she just cocked her head to the side cutely.  
  
"Shiva," he said slowly, "I want to see something."  
  
"Alright." She replied unsurely.  
  
Leaning forward, Tai gently pressed his lips against hers. She responded by adding her own presser to the kiss. Tai's tongue cautiously slid out of his mouth and darted across Shiva's lower lip. She complied by opening her mouth for his entrance. Tenderly, Tai allowed his tongue to lightly slide up and down Shiva's fangs. Shiva gave an involuntary gasp and her tail twitched slightly. After a few more seconds of exploring her canines, Tai pulled back. Shiva opened her eyes and smiled at him.  
  
"That was nice." She said almost shyly.  
  
"Yeah," Tai agreed, "I really liked your fangs."  
  
Shiva giggled.  
  
"Care to find out what else my fangs are good for?" Shiva challenged him. Tai grinned and leaned forward once more.  
  
"Wait!" She stopped him with a hand over his mouth, "Change into a demi-god."  
  
"Why?" Tai asked, even though he changed anyways.  
  
"I just want to test out the stamina of a god." Shiva grinned. "Unless of course, you're too tired from last night..."  
  
"Like hell I am!" Tai yelled as he tackled her to the bed.  
  
BREAK  
  
Once again, I apologize for it taking so long. I've been busy as hell.  
  
Don't forget to review! 


	14. Talking: No more sex!

Chapter 14

    Tai yawned as he woke up—for the second morning in a row—naked. At least this time he expected it.  He and Shiva were lying on her bed with the sheets only making it to their waists, leaving their torsos uncovered.  He smiled down at the sleeping half demon cuddled into his chest and would have found himself quite relaxed if not for the uncomfortable pressure in his bladder.  Unfortunately for him he was rendered immobile until Shiva got off of his left wing. Resigned, he figured he could hold it for a while.  He decided to pass the time by lazily tracing the tattoos on Shiva's stomach with his finger.

    Shiva began to stir at his touch and eventually squinted up at him.

    "Morning," Tai said softly while placing a kiss on her forehead.  He didn't know why he did it, but for some reason he felt really sensational around her lately. Definitely different from how he felt about Moira.

    "Mmm, morning." She mumbled while snuggling farther into his warm body. After a moment she made a face.

    "Ugg- Tai, you are lying on my tail!"

    Tai had to smile at this.

    "So? You're lying on my wings."

    Shiva cracked her eyes open a little and giggled, "Well I guess we're stuck here then."

    Tai made a pouty face.

    "But... I have to pee..." he whined.

    Shiva burst out laughing.

    "I'm serious!" he continued, chagrined, "There are consequences to having that kind of stamina!"

    The young demoness next to him stifled her giggled and nodded in agreement.

    "That was pretty damn good last night." Shiva said truthfully, "By the way, thank you. I needed that."

    "The sex?"

    "Yea the sex! I can only watch you shower so many times before I jump you!"

    "Look whose talking miss I like to shimmy while I'm wet."

    Shiva smiled slyly, "You like it."

    "You got me there." Tai admitted. He winced as Shiva rolled a bit closer to him, adding more pressure to his abdomen. Shiva rolled her eyes.

    "Oh fine then! Go relieve yourself!"

    They laid there for a moment in silence. Tai looked expectantly at Shiva.

    "Shiva..."

    "Yea...?"

    "You gotta get off me," he laughed.

**BREAK**

    Breakfast that morning was nothing out of the ordinary—besides the fact that Gennai had noticed a boy and a girl coming out of the boy's room and a boy and a girl coming out of the girl's room.  He shook his head in mortification at his successors' behavior. It was time... for a talk.  Gennai stepped into the kitchen where the four human looking guardians ate their eggs while holding a casual conversation.

    "Man, she is a screamer!" Tai laughed and then winced as a scowling Shiva yanked on his ponytail. Griff chortled through a mouthful of eggs, earning him a reproachful look from Angela.

    "Hell yeah, I could almost hear her over Angela—and that's saying something."

    The boys continued making cracks about their intimate partners howling with laughter, pounding on the table and wiping tears from their eyes.

    "If we're lucky they'll choke on their eggs," Angela sniffed disdainfully.

    "Hmm," Shiva agreed, "So how was it last night anyways?"

    Angela smiled, tuning out the boy's guffaws, "It was pretty good. It seems to get better each time, ya know?  How 'bout you two? From what I heard you outlasted us..." She finished this account with raised eyebrows.

    "Let's just say there's a big difference between humans and gods." Shiva giggled. Angela's jaw dropped.

    "You mean you did... while he was a demi-God?"

    "That's not aaaallll," Shiva sang and Angela's eyes got even wider.

    "You—you were a demon?"

    "Holy shit, no wonder you were at it all night." Angela exclaimed at Shiva's shameless nod.

    "Well getting her out of that leather suit probably took up a good portion of that time." Tai interrupted, leaning across the table while Griff laughed.

    "Baby we should try it while we're not humans." Angela said casually to Griff.

    Griff choked on his eggs.  Shiva gave Angela a high five.

    "We have to talk." An elderly voice stated from the kitchen doorway.  Gennai hobbled in, looking as old as ever and sat down at the table.

    Tai pushed his plate away from himself and asked, "Is it about the prophecy?  Have you decoded it?"

    Gennai fixed them a disapproving glare.

    "It's about you sexual activities that you engage in far too often." He replied blandly.

    Shiva snorted into her eggs.

    "Umm," Angela started unsurely, "I'm not sure what you mean? Are talking about the sex we have?"

    "Yes," said Gennai a bit angrily, "I understand you have a relationship but your duties as a guardian are first priority.  I do not need you getting sick or pregnant at a time like this.  We are bordering a war!"

    "Gennai calm down.  No one is going to get pregnant." Tai said evenly.  Gennai shook his head.

    "You don't know that.  And this goes for you and Shiva as well."

    "I know when I can get pregnant Gennai, I've got it covered." Shiva said in her defense.

    "That's all good and well," Gennai replied, "But don't think I don't know what you did to get the prophecy Tai."

    Tai blushed and looked down at his lap.

    "Gennai, if it will make you feel better we'll try to cut down on the sex." Griff stated.

    "Anyway, the war will be over in the next few months," said Angela, "pregnancies take too long to become too much of a problem."

    Gennai sighed wearily, "I'm sorry children, but in the digital world a pregnancy would take from three to four months at the most.  I've seen them happen at two and a half months."

    A shocked silence followed this statement.

    "AHHHHH!" Angela screamed, "I can't believe it! Griff!  No more sex!  Two and a half months?  Two and a half?  What if I'm pregnant now?  What if I just swell up one night and the baby shoots out of me?"

    "Uh, cross your legs?" Griff added hopefully.  Shiva smacked him upside the head.  Tai looked just as lost as Griff did at Angela's sudden support of abstinence.

    "Calm down Angela," Tai said, "I'll buy a shit load of condoms when I go to the real world in a few weeks."

    "Thanks man," Griff said relieved.  Apparently he couldn't handle the thought of no more sex, "Wait, why are you going to the real world?"

    "Yeah," Shiva said eyeing him suspiciously, "Why are you going there?  You just saw your friends yesterday."

    "I'm not going to Japan."

    "Well where are you going then?"

    Tai rubbed his eyes resignedly, "I told you where I was going last week. I've gone a few times now. Why are you such a space shot?"

    "Tell meeeee!" Shiva whined.

    "He's going to England," Gennai interrupted, tired of the little game, "to work on negotiations with the wizarding portion of the human world."

    A couple months ago, Tai came up with the idea to make alliances with other dimensions of earth.  At first Gennai was reluctant, but Tai was extremely insistent on the idea and kept bringing up the point that it could prevent wars between the dimensions should they ever be thrown into coexistence.  His idea was to choose a representative from each world to make a pact with.  So far he and the other guardians had reached Hell, the dark ocean, the undying lands, and the wizarding world.

    "You mean we're going." Tai corrected.

    "No, I'm afraid It'll be just you this time Tai," Gennai said with a small smile as he stood up to leave.  Tai opened his mouth to protest when he noticed Gennai was leaning heavily on the arm of his chair as he struggled to stand.  He had been walking much more hunched over than usual these past few weeks and his hands shook more often than not.  He chose to remain silent.

    "Can I come with you Tai?  Please?" Shiva asked.  Tai regarded Shiva for a moment and decided he could use the company.

    "Alright, but you have to behave yourself.  The person I'm meeting has recently suffered a loss among other things so try to be nice."

    "Oh all right," Shiva pouted.

    "You're only meeting with one person?  I thought it would be some counsel meeting thing.  Like with the ministry or something?" Griff asked confusedly.

    Tai laughed harshly and replied in a dismissive tone, "Unfortunately their ministry is unstable and not capable to make apt decisions for the period of turmoil which they have recently entered.  They have also been cursed with an incompetent and idiotic minister.  No, I have found a much more suitable contact for the wizarding world."

    Silence ensued for a moment.

    "So I take it you don't like the ministry?" Griff asked wearily.

    "Nope!" Tai said cheerfully, "You want to come?"

    "Uh, no thanks. I've seen enough of England."

    "I'll stay with Griff," Angela said uneasily, "He'll need the company."

    Tai shrugged, "I'll right. Shiva, don't forget this time."

    "Can we stop and see Isha? Please?"

    "No, I don't think we'll have time. Maybe some other time."

    Shiva sighed. "Oh, alright. You do know I haven't seen him for like a month, right?  Do you know what happens when I don't get my regular dose of man candy?"

    Griff shook his head at her.

    "You're supposed to be making alliances with hell, idiot, not flirting with the guardians of the gates!"

    "Well you can't blame me!  Look at the man, he's half a millennium old and he still looks like an Abrocombe model!" Shiva cried in her defense.

    Griff and Tai gave her unimpressed looks.     Shiva looked at Angela for support.

    "Well, he is ridiculously good looking-" Griff threw her a sharp look, "but he's also married. And like you said, in actuality he's pretty old, for a half demon that is."

    "Actually, he got a divorce," Tai whispered to Griff so Shiva wouldn't hear.

    Shiva sighed in defeat, "I still want to ogle him."

    "I know Shiva," Angela said sympathetically, "I know."

**BREAK**

    "Why aren't you trying to get that damn prophesy back witch?"

    Moira slapped a hand to her forehead and moaned.  She had been over this a thousand times with her master and it was wearing on her nerves.

    "I will, alright!" she snapped.  She could feel the beginnings of another migraine pulsing behind her eyes. "I'll send out some legions in the time being."

    The fire in front of her roared with indignation.

    "It has been weeks since you launched any attack.  You are getting weak and lazy."

    Moira felt a fiery anger swell in her chest.  Her emotions were on overdrive and she was not in the mood to deal with a megalomaniac control freak.

    "Listen," she growled, closing her eyes in hopes of holding her temper, "I am going to kill that bitch and then I will destroy the old man and all of his little followers."

    The voice seemed to snort in contempt as it stated, "And what about your little lover boy? Surely we can't forget about him? Or are you emotionally attached to this one as well?"

    The words were spoken with severe sarcasm.  Moira's eyes flashed at the mention of Tai and she snarled, "I will most definitely kill that imposter.  He used his connection to Taro against me!  H-he manipulated me..." she trailed off as tears welled in her eyes.  Taro would have never used her like that.  Taro loved her.  Tai was not Taro, and she was beginning to see that.

    "Stop your blubbering you useless bitch!  I told you to deal with the boy as soon as possible and look what happened!"

    Moira's head snapped up in alarm.

    "What?" she asked, fear in her eyes.

    "The prophecy, that's what!"

    Tears started to slide down her cheeks.  For some reason Moira couldn't stop crying.

    "That's all you care about isn't it?  That damn prophecy!" she screamed at him as she turned on her heel and strode towards the door.

    "Where are you going?" The voice roared at her, seemingly troubled at her behavior.

    "To the kitchens!" she screamed back at it before she slammed the door.

    The room was silent for a moment.

    "What... the hell?"

**BREAK**

    True to her word, within the next couple of weeks, Moira launched an attack.  It started out with a few virus digimon attacking Primary Village.  Angela and Griff volunteered to take care of the issue thinking it was nothing more than a small raid.  Oh how wrong they were.

    Minutes after they arrived they were ambushed from all sides by several devidramon mixed with a few other types of digimon.  Griff held them off for a moment while Angela quickly contacted the coliseum.  Shiva, of course came right a way to help them. At the time, unfortunately, Tai was away on the other side of Server Island trying to patch up a rift that broke though the digital world's barrier and was allowing random woodland animals in from the human world (mostly raccoons).  Eventually Gennai was able to contact Tai about the attack on Primary Village and he left immediately.  He was about a mile away from the scene when something large and black attacked at him from the left.

    Tai jumped back and landed in a crouch several feet away as a devimon swung its claws at him.  The devimon grabbed a boulder next to it and hurled it at him.  Tai launched into the air as the boulder smashed into the ground where he was once positioned.  Spreading his wings, Tai soared over the devimon's head and started flying east to where the others were battling.  As expected, the devimon followed him.  Tai made sure to keep a safe distance from the pursuing aggressor as he searched for his friends.     Moments later he spotted them just where the forest ended.     Angela and Griff were working together while they constantly deleted the hordes of virus digimon that were attacking the group.     To his utter surprise he found Shiva battling with Moira—well battling wouldn't be the appropriate word in this case.     More like bitching with her.     The two demonic females were standing at least 20 feet away from each other and screaming profanities.     Tai slowed down a little as he observed the confrontation in bewilderment and would have forgotten about the devimon behind him if it had not suddenly dived at his unguarded back.

    "Woah there!" Tai yelled as he spun out of the way, his long brown hair whipping his face.  Before the devimon could turn around for another assault, Tai drew his sword as it began spouting fire, and in one swift motion slashed a giant flame through its back, effectively deleting it.  Without a second thought Tai dived down quickly by folding his wings behind him and then expanding them at the end if his descent to soften his landing.

    "—goddamn whore—"

    "—you're the whore, man stealer—"

    "—oh, you're one to talk slut—"

    "—bitch—"

    "—cunt—"

    "—oily skank—"

    "—ass wipe—"

    Tai looked back at the two women and caught Moira's eye.  She froze in mid tirade.  Her eyes lusted over for a moment before she caught herself and glared at him.  Tai returned the look while trying to suppress the warm feeling that was rising from his chest.  Without warning Moira launched herself at Tai, staff raised high.  Tai used his sword to block the attack and threw her away from him high into the air.  She flipped over his head and landed behind him; she immediately attacked again.  She kept charging at him without relenting for the better part of ten minutes.  Shiva had long since decided to leave it to them and joined Angela and Griff in taking out devidramon.

    Tai grunted as the butt of Moira's staff hit his stomach.  He knocked it away with his left arm and slashed at her side with his sword, spinning in the process.  Moira just narrowly avoided the weapon. Her eyes widened suddenly and she slowly backed away from Tai.

    "What's your problem?" he asked disdainfully, yet he couldn't help but feel concerned about her strange behavior.

    Moira threw him a threatened look before a whirlwind of snow swept her up beneath her feet and took her away.  Seeing their mistress leave, the few remaining devidramon stopped fighting and flew after her.  The guardians made their way toward the TV screen, intent on going home.

    "Tai," Shiva said quietly, walking after him, "There was something off about her..."

    "What do you mean?"

    Shiva just shrugged, "I'm not sure yet.

**BREAK**

    "Ugg, I feel so gross," Angela moaned as she rubbed a spot of dirt on her cheek, only to achieve smearing it.  Without a word, Griff grabbed her hand and led her to the showers.  His walking was slowed with a limp from a devidramon piercing his calf with its talons.

    Tai wiped blood out of his eye and looked at Shiva.

    "You know what we do now?"

    "Um... take a shower?"

    "Well yeah, but before that."

    "...hug Gennai!"

    "yyyyyyyyyyes!"

    The two of them snuck through the halls of the coliseum like it was mission impossible until they heard Gennai's unmistakable voice coming from Ace's room.  When they peered inside, however, he was no where to be found.

    "Gennai?" Tai called out as he stepped into the room, "Oh Gennai—where are you ya sexy bitch?"

    Shiva giggled and looked around as well.

    "Ace, where's Gennai?" She asked.

    "I'm sorry, but he is unavailable at the moment," Ace said neutrally.

    "But we just heard him," Tai argued, "He has to be here."

    "Just leave it Tai," Shiva sighed as she took his arm and led him out of the room.

    Tai looked back into the seemingly empty room and furrowed his brow. Something was definitely wrong.

**BREAK**

Dun, dun dun...

I know I know... where the hell have I been? Severe case of writer's block.

20 million points to whoever can guess who 'Isha' is! You'll find out later for the idiots who can't.

I'm sure everyone knows who Tai's contact for the wizarding world it. Surprise, surprise.

Good new: The next chapter will be out in about a week or two!


	15. Visiting: Juvenile Delinquents

Chapter 15

        The summer sun warmed the air surrounding Surrey's local high school. School was released a mere three days ago which meant no teenager should have had any reason to be climbing out of one of the school windows. Apparently two did. A fit young man dressed     in a complementing claret tee shirt and baggy kaki shorts climbed out first. His dark hair was swept back into a low ponytail that reached about an inch or two past the base of his     neck. Right behind him a young woman tumbled out of the window on top of him. Her honey-brown wavy hair was pulled back in a half ponytail. She wore a pair of short red     shorts and black hiking boots with a tight white tee shirt that exposed her midriff.

    "Well," Shiva asked excitedly as she helped Tai up to his feet, "Where to?"

    Tai laughed and brushed off his shorts, "calm down, we need to take a little walk first."

    Together the pair walked along the streets of Surrey, occasionally holding hands or stopping to look at something particularly interesting. Finally Tai stopped and casually leaned against a lamppost to face Shiva.

    "Look over my shoulder," he said quietly. Shiva lifted her eyes from his face and gazed behind him. "Across the street and two houses over, there's a guy working in the yard."

    Sure enough, Shiva spotted a shirtless, dark-haired youth pushing a mower across an overgrown lawn.

    "Is that him?" She asked in excitement. Tai nodded. "Oh, wow! And he's just a kid. Cool. This is gunna be so much fun! Well, what are we waiting for?"

    "Wait," Tai grabbed her arm, "We have to be careful about approaching him. Remember what I said? He's suffered a lot recently. I've only spoken to him briefly once; it was really just an introduction. Oh, that and there are people who are almost always watching him that he doesn't really trust at the moment."

    Shiva blinked at him in surprise. "What—is everyone out to get this kid?"

    "Actually yes," he replied dryly.

    "Just leave it to me then," Shiva cried as she sprinted towards the property.

    "_Shiva_!" Tai hissed angrily, but it was too late. The girl in question was making a beeline for the poor, unsuspecting lad.

    "Hey Sexy!" She yelled as she went sprinting towards him. The boy looked up at her with startled green eyes as a faint blush touched his cheeks. Shiva's demonic hearing could make out a faint chuckle from a patch of bushes near some trees.

    "Never again," Tai moaned into his hands. He took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and stalked towards the nuisance he had brought along with him.

    "Hi there!" Shiva smiled warmly at the young man in front of her. He looked as if he was only a couple of inches taller than her. His messy black hair fell past his ears and his bangs hung over his eyes. He skillfully blew a strand of hair out of his face as he quietly gazed at her with starting green eyes through his round-rimmed glasses. He wore extremely baggy pants that hung dangerously low on his hips, even with the help of a belt (which Shiva thought was very risqué) and he had a slim figure. His chest and arms were lightly muscles and he was a bit red from recent exposure to the sun.

    "Hey," he replied unenthusiastically. He had turned off the mower when she arrived and was standing casually with his thumbs clinging to his back pockets. Behind his back, where Shiva wasn't able to see, his right hand twitched—itching to grasp the wooden stick behind him.

    "So anyway..." Shiva continued, "I was chilling across the street over there and saw a potential sex god... which would be you... incase you're that slow. Anyhoo, I got this insane urge to turn you into my sex slave and thought I should ask you before I took you by force."

    The boy just stared at her. Shiva sighed, and then realized she didn't ask Tai what his name was. '_Idiot_' she thought to herself.

    "So, what's your name? Unless you want me to call you sex god?"

    Shiva smiled at the thought. A picture of Tai, the young man in front of her, and Isha as her slaves—wearing nothing but togas and collars on their necks—flashed in her mind. She quickly shook her head, trying to dispel the alluring image so that her horny demonic nature wouldn't start making any uncalled for decisions.

    The boy paused for a moment before replying, "It's Reg, Reginald Fairfield."

    Now it was Shiva's turn to stare. She knew he was lying; she could smell it. But something about the name was familiar...

    "Shiva!"

    Shiva and 'Reg' both turned to face Tai who had just made it onto the lawn by that point. 'Reg' seemed to recognize Tai by the look on his face.

    "Hey, Harry. I am so sorry about this. She made me take her with me," Tai grimaced at the lame excuse, "Oh yeah! This is Shiva. Shiva, this is Harry Potter."

    Harry visibly stiffened at the mention of his full name.

    "But he told me his name was Reg!" She whined.

    Tai looked at Harry incredulously.

    "Did you get that off of 'Boy Meets World'?"

    '_Oh,_' Shiva thought.

    Harry grinned at him and Tai started laughing. Shiva unconsciously admired what a nice smile Harry had.

    "So what brings you here?" Harry asked.

    "You have a really sexy accent!" Shiva exclaimed, suddenly very excited.

    Harry looked mildly confused for a moment, "Erm..."

    Tai hit Shiva on the head.

    "Stop it," he commanded. He turned to Harry, "can we talk about this inside?"

    "Sure," he replied easily. He started to walk towards the house when he stopped and faced them once more, "Just agree with anything I say, ok?"

    Tai and Shiva nodded before following him into the ridiculously clean house. They didn't make it five feet into the hallway before a thin, long necked woman heatedly swooped down on them.

    "Who are these people?" she hissed at Harry while shooting Tai and Shiva dirty looks. Her eyes dodged around suspiciously and she craned her neck to look out the window, "You are not to be bringing more freaks into this house!"

    "My headmaster sent them," Harry said calmly, "he thought I could use a little company. Don't worry we'll be quiet. You won't even know we're here..." and he breezed by her up the stairs. Tai and Shiva followed him past the woman.

    "I can tell they like you," Tai said sarcastically as he eyes the small, dark room. Harry shrugged and picked up an oversized shirt from the floor and put it on.

    "So you're a wizard?" Shiva asked him as she plopped down at his desk and rifled though his homework.

    "Shiva! Get out of that!" Tai yelled at her.

    "No, it's ok. As long as she doesn't hurt it. That's my homework." Harry said.

    "Oh, WOW!" Shiva cried in excitement, "You use quills? And parchment?"

    Harry laughed, "Yeah, we do."

    Shiva went back to examining odd things in the room, softly voicing her amazement. Tai turned to Harry.

    "So, have you thought about what I said?" he was, of course, referring to a while ago, when he literally attacked the boy while he was in Hogsmeade (apparently Harry was banned from it but snuck out anyway). Gennai had taken him there to witness the life of wizards and pointed out the famous boy when he was alone. It was then that Tai introduced himself to the youth (ignoring Gennai's protests) and tried to convince him to ally with the digital world.

    "I still find it hard to believe you live in a computer." Harry stated flatly. Tai laughed.

    "Well, it's not so much a computer than all the data collected and merged into a parallel dimension."

    "Uh-huh..." Harry said disbelievingly.

    "We live in a coliseum!" Shiva piped up, poking her head through a tent of a shirt and clutching the mass of pants that we're held up only by her hands. Harry threw his head back and started laughing.

    "Shiva!" Tai yelled at her, "What are you doing? Get out of those! And you—don't     encourage her!" he growled pointing his finger at the young wizard who was still laughing on the bed.

    "Are these really yours?" Shiva giggled. She tugged at the oversized shirt that draped down to her knees. Harry's laughing slowed to a stop.

    "Erm... yeah. They're actually my cousin's. I don't own any muggle clothes of my own." He said with a hint of embarrassment.

    "Muggle?"

    "Non-magic people," he replied easily. Shiva only nodded.

    "So," Tai said, "will you ally yourself to the digital world? We're in a war and you're in a war; I think both sides can use all the help they can get."

    "I still really don't see how I can be of much help."

    "I can!" Shiva exclaimed loudly as she waddled to the bed.

    "Shiva, take those damn things off!" Tai scowled at her.

    Shiva ignored Tai and plopped herself right in Harry's lap. The British boy blushed a brilliant red.

    "You're going to be an extremely valuable ally after you kick Voldemort's Ass. And before the war is over you will need our help. Hell—you need our help right now! Look at these clothes!"

    Harry stood up abruptly causing Shiva to fall unceremoniously on the floor.

    "Whoa, whoa, wait. How do you know about Voldemort? And what makes you think I'll kill him? What—I mean—are you a seer?"

    "Yeah... how do you know that?" Tai asked guardedly. _And why the hell hadn't she said anything to him?_

    Shiva rubbed her butt and stood up too.

    "Hello," she said waving her hands, "I'm Shiva... the psychic demon! I've seen this. To answer your last question, no, I'm not a seer. And I never said you would kill Voldemort."

    "You're a psychic?" Harry asked, "And how is that different from a seer?"

    "Well, I move things around with my mind and get dreams of the future—"

    "Wait—dreams as in premonitions?" Harry interrupted.

    "Yeah, whatever they're called, I get them. And I can also break into people's minds if I want," she leaned in and leered at him, "Don't worry, this is the real deal, none of that shit Trelawny gives you."

    "How did you...hey! Don't go through my head!"

    "If you don't want people to go through your head my dear, you must get some walls up around it." She sang, prancing around the room until she tripped on the legs of the giant pants and went crashing to the ground.

    "Just give it up," Tai said to Harry when he opened his mouth to replay, "She's always going through mine. Annoys the hell out of me."

    "Yeah, well I have stuff in there that shouldn't be known by just anybody." Harry replied huffily.

    "Don't worry about that prophecy," Shiva said waving a dismissive hand from her place on the floor, "It's all gunna work out for you in the end."

    "I thought you said I don't kill Voldemort."

    "Where the hell did you learn all this shit?" Tai exclaimed.

    Shiva ignored Tai.

    "You don't. You can't. His soul is immortal."

    "Well then he's obviously going to kill me. Neither can live while the other survives... sound familiar since you went through my head? How is _that_ 'working out' for me?"

    "He's not going to kill you."

    "Ok, now she's freaking the hell out of me..." Tai mumbled.

    "So the war will never end." continued Harry.

    "Yes it will. It won't last as long as the first, I can tell you that."

    "Well then he must kill me!"

    "He can't. No one can."

    "I'm immortal?" Harry asked finding this very hard to believe.

    "Not yet..."

    This got Harry's attention. Tai, by this time, had long since given up trying to figure out what the hell they were talking about. He would beat it out of Shiva later.

    "What do you mean?" Harry asked.

    "I can't tell you that! It would ruin all the fun!"

    "Shiva!"

    "Let's go shopping." She said in a bored tone, deciding she was done with the conversation. Tai and Harry merely blinked at her.

    "Come on!" She urged, heading for the door.

    "Shiva, we didn't come here to shop." Tai stated crossing his arms.

    "Come on. I want to play dress up Harry."

    "I'd rather not." Harry said deadpanned.

    "But I have a credit card and a master plan!" Shiva exclaimed getting a starry-eyed look on her face.

    Neither boy moved to follow her.

    "We're leaving now." Shiva growled sternly

    Still, no one moved.

    "NOW!" she roared at them. Her human appearance almost flickered. The two young men reluctantly followed her down the stairs and out the door.

    "Wait a minute!" Harry exclaimed, grabbing both their arms and leading them back into the house.

    "What now?" Shiva asked impatiently. She did not want to be deprived of her dress up game any longer.

    "I don't know if Tai told you, but there are people out there—"

    "Oh, yeah. Yes, yes, he told me." Shiva said.

    "Damn it," Tai ran a hand through his bangs in frustration, "I forgot about them."

    Shiva shook her head ruefully at the two, pondering males in front of her.

    "Boys, boys, boys. When will you learn?" She threw an arm around each of their shoulders, "Women have the solution to everything?"

    Without warning all three of their bodies dissolved into wisps of smoke, evaporating from the property of number four Privet Drive.

**BREAK**

* * *

   

    When Tai opened his eyes again he was found standing in front of the high school that he snuck out of earlier. Next to him were Shiva and Harry, the latter looking as lost and bewildered as he.

    "What...the hell...was that?" Tai asked slowly. He turned to face a smug looking Shiva. Harry watched her expectantly.

    "That, my delicious partner-in-crime, is called shadow walking. It's a natural form of transportation for space demons."

    "That was wicked, that's what it was," stated Harry excitably. He was literally bouncing on the balls of his feet. This was the most emotion Tai had seen him show yet, "That was like apperating, only better! You have _got_ to teach me that!"

    Shiva laughed, "I'm not sure if would work for a human, but I'll see what I can do."

    "Hold on," Tai interrupted, "how come I've never seen this happen before?"

    Shiva grinned at him sheepishly.

    "Well, for some reason, it doesn't work in the digital world. It only works in the real world."

    Tai looked confused, "Huh? But that doesn't make sense..."

    "I know, I know. But we really need to get shopping now. Harry, do you know any good stores?"

    "Not around here, there might be some in London though."

    "We don't have time for that," Tai argued.

    "Then let me introduce you to the knight bus." Harry grinned. He pulled his wand from his back pocket and complacently lifted it into the air.

**BREAK**

* * *

    "That was Awesome!" Tai exclaimed as they climbed off the knight bus. Harry grinned in agreement. Of course he might have been grinning because of the number of times Shiva banged her head on the window. He wasn't sure yet.

    "So now what?" Harry asked, looking at the agitator.

    Shiva rubbed her sore head one last time before linking arms with both of her victims and dragging them down the London streets.

    "Harry, I've got the perfect style picked out for you."

    "Merlin save me," Harry muttered.

    Twenty minutes later, The-Boy-Lived found himself standing amidst racks and racks of dark garments, the load of clothes in his arms getting heavier and heavier as Shiva and a male clerk (who openly announced his sexual preferences with a few well delivered innuendos to a panic stricken demi-god) tossed the clothing at him.

    "Alright! That's a good start. Try them on hunny buns!" Shiva said after she thought they had a sufficient start with the clothing.

    "I'll say..." Rudolf (the clerk) murmured while staring avidly at Harry's 'buns'. Apparently Harry heard him because he threw a scathing look over his shoulder as he marches towards the dressing rooms.

    "I am such a goddess!" Shiva praised herself. Tai rubbed his hands over his face and sighed.

    "Shiva, I like Harry, I really do, but I don't want to spend the whole day shopping for him."

    "Don't worry; I've got special treats planned out for all of us," she grinned manically. Tai responded with a groan.

    "Oh My! I haven't been this turned on since... well, the guy with the ponytail walked in!" exclaimed Rudolf, effectively drawing the pair's attention the dressing room door.

    Harry stood before them in a pair of faded denim jeans with a tight dusty red t-shirt with white sleeves and collar.

    "Turn around," Shiva commanded. Harry rolled his eyes but complied.

    "Mmm, will you look at that butt in those pants?" Shiva mumbled.

    "Baby, I couldn't agree more." Agreed Rudolf.

    Harry quickly went back to facing them with a glare.

    "Well," Shiva said in a businesslike manner, "I like these. I think darker colors would go better with you; they would bring out your eyes more. What do you think Rudolf?"

    "Oh, I quite agree."

    For the next hour, Shiva and Rudolf had made Harry try on and model dozens of clothing. Harry seemed to agree with their assessment on the dark colors. He especially liked the shirts with dark-biased logos on them; they gave him a sense of defiance.

    "Man, you are morbid..." Tai said with a shake of his head. He spent most of the time napping in a chair outside the dressing room, much to the young wizard's envy.

    In the end, he left the store with about 7 pairs of pants varying from black leather to faded jeans to khakis, several shirts in black or dark colors, a couple of gym pants and shirts ("'Cause I know you'll be training for Tim-Tim (Voldemort)...right?" Shiva had said with a hard look), socks, boxers, a couple of belts, a pair of running shoes, a pair of black leather boots, a leather jacket, a jean jacket, a suede jacket, and at the last second, a leather trench coat.

    "Shiva, I'm not going to need all these damn clothes," Harry complained as he walked out of the store with several bags.

    "Oh, hush. It's good to have variety. Now its time for the fun stuff!"

**BREAK**

* * *

    "This," Tai asked incredulously, eyeing the store they were in front of, "is the fun stuff?"

    The three stooges were standing in front of a CVS pharmacy store.

    "No, you fool; this is for those condoms you promised Angela and Griff," Shiva said as if it were obvious, "and we might as well get some for ourselves while we're here."

    "What?" Harry asked in alarm, but he was already being pulled into the store. It took Shiva all but three minutes to come back to the counter with an armful of condom boxes.

    "Do you really need that many?" Harry asked warily as they were being rung up at the counter.

    "Of course! Some of these are for us for the next time I drop by," Shiva gave him a saucy wink before skipping out of the drug store.

    "Let's go!" Shiva yelled as soon as the sun hit her. She broke into a run down the street. Tai and Harry shared a weary glance before reluctantly following her. A few minutes later they found her standing impatiently in front of a Tattoo and Piercing Parlor.

    "Oh, Shiva...you cannot be serious," said Tai, but he had a grin on his face. Harry too was grinning, but he seemed more nervous about the whole issue.

    "Come on Harold, you already have the clothes of a bad-ass juvenile delinquent, you might as well look like one!"

    "My name isn't Harold," Harry stated flatly.

    "Oh? What is it then? It can't really be just Harry, can it?"

    Harry simply ginned mischievously at her before sliding through the door.

    "Oh, that boy," Shiva growled and followed him in. Tai shook his head grinning and entered the store last.

**BREAK**

* * *

    "Oh, damn!" Harry laughed, "I cannot wait to see the look on Hermione's face when she sees this!"

    As he laughed, a glint of metal flashed from within his mouth. Shiva and Tai laughed along with him.

    In the beginning it started out with a nose ring for Shiva (In addition to her already triple pierced ears), and getting both ears pierced for both of the guys. Then Tai decided he wanted a nipple ring, while Harry decided he wanted a thick ring on the upper part of his ear. Then he wanted a nipple ring too when he saw Tai's. At this point Shiva wanted an eyebrow ring. Then Harry wanted a lip ring. Two seconds after getting it, he wanted a tongue ring as well. By this time Tai and Shiva were firm believers that Harry Potter had an obsession with needles. Just when the man who worked there thought he could leave for his lunch break, the trio decided to get tattoos.

    Shiva got a tattoo on her right hipbone of an intricate design of a Celtic wheel while Tai had a fierce, flaming phoenix tattoo (Harry described what a phoenix was) on his right arm ("Very mannish," Shiva said while wiggling her eyebrows).

    As soon as his first tattoo, an Ankh on his left bicep, was completed, Harry demanded another one. The second one was designed after the Seal of Cagliostro. The tattoo was a snake in the shape of an S with a finely crafted arrow plunged diagonally through it. It wasn't so much the design as the size of it that was shocking to the two digital guardians. The tattoo was placed on his back stretching from just above his tailbone to the middle of his shoulder blades. Tai and Shiva's diagnosis on his needle problem had only been confirmed.

**BREAK**

* * *

    Four hours later, the three of them were standing in front of the high school in Surry.

    "Potter, you're a real freak you know that?" Tai said, shaking his head at a very different young man than what they started out with that morning.

**Flashback**

    After spicing up their bodies with tattoos and piercing, the three of them went out to eat lunch at a small pub. Then Shiva dragged the two young men to an optometrist to get Harry some new glasses. This was something Harry was all for. When they arrived there, small world that it is, the owner of the store happened to be a very good friend of Isha's, a fox demon. Disguised as a human, he was about an inch taller than Tai and looked about thirty with short reddish brown hair. Shiva, ever the so easily excitable, literally launched herself at him, asking an array of questions on Isha's health.

    The owner was more than happy to help out any friend of Isha and took the three of them in the back of the store where he had a lab set up. There he had Harry pick out whichever frame suited him the most. Harry decided on a pair of small rectangular frames and the demon took them into another room. Twenty minutes later he brought them back out. They were tinted yellow.

    "Try them on," Shippo (as he had introduced himself earlier) urged. Cautiously, Harry placed the glasses on his face and gasped.

    "What?" Shiva and Tai asked eagerly.

    "I—I can see your skeletons!"

    Shippo grinned, "Look at Shiva, and don't concentrate as hard."

    Harry complied while Shiva gave Shippo a hard look. Suddenly Harry whistled.

    "Black lace knickers Shiva? Don't tell me you wore those just for me!"

    "ARRGH!" Shiva growled as she punched Harry in the chest, whipped around, and punched a laughing fox demon in the stomach. She didn't need to punch Tai; he had held his hands up in submission.

    "These are amazing!" Harry said happily. Shiva crossed her arms and grumbled her disagreement.

    "Oh, that's not all," Shippo said, "concentrate on one of the bricks on the wall and picture it up close. Then think 'magnify'"

    Harry did so and Shiva and Tai were able to see the glasses shimmer from yellow to blue.

    "Whoa!" Harry exclaimed.

    "What now?" Tai asked in interest.

    "They zoomed in on it! There's a lot of dirt on there..."

    Shippo smiled at him, "These glasses have six featured with a different color for each one. The first one is normal—just think in your head 'normal' and they'll appear clear. The next one is sun; they'll turn into sunglasses. Then there is 'nocturnal' where they turn green, 'infrared' where they turn red, they turn yellow with the 'x-ray' feature, and with 'magnify' they turn blue."

    "Oh Merlin," Harry said, plunking down in a chair. He was still trying to get used to the fact that there were demons walking around. Shippo chuckled.

    "A lot to take in, I know. You can change the intensity of each feature by concentrating. It may take a while to get used to so practice with them alright?"

    Harry nodded dumbly before shaking his hand and thanking him profusely.

    "How much will this cost?" Shiva asked.

    "Just the regular price of glasses," Shippo said, ringing them up at the front of the store, "I have a feeling I'll be owing you in the future. Make sure to say 'hi' to Inu Yasha for me."

    He winked at them before attending to other customers.

    And of course, after the glasses there had to be the haircut. Harry's hair was still messy, but much more fashionably so. It was layered and flipped out from about the bottom of his ear to the nape of his neck. His bangs fell in his face, gently brushing the top of his cheekbones, and parted on one side a little just so that his scar was visible.

**End Flashback**

    Harry just stuck out his tongue at Tai, tongue ring and all.

    "You do look pretty damn hot, you know that right?" Shiva said, eyeing his butt in the dark blue jeans he was wearing, "A real bad ass."

    "I'm not supposed to be a bad ass you know," Harry grinned. He fluttered his eyelashes and took on a more wistful, feminine voice: "I'm supposed to be the _tragic hero_."

    Tai laughed.

    "And what do you want to be?" he asked.

    Harry pretended to think for a moment, "...a bad ass."

    "Then that's what you shall be!"

    Shiva smiled at them, still not believing her luck at landing two gorgeous men in her company.

    "Well, I think its time to get going, eh?" Shiva asked, wrapping her arms around Harry's shoulders from behind. The two of them disappeared in a swirl of smoky wisps—reconfiguring seconds later in his bedroom along with all the bags.

    "I'm serious about you teaching me that," Harry said. Shiva giggled and stepped forward and began playing with the collar of his shirt.

    "I **will** be visiting again," she said. She looked up into his brilliant green eyes.

    "Good. I want to see what you really look like. I heard that you were part demon..."

    "Did you now?" Shiva smirked, playing along.

    "As a matter of fact I did," He smiled, his lip ring moved as his mouth did.

    "You know... I think you owe me a little pay back for all that money I spent on you today..."

    Harry suddenly looked nervous.

    "Um, I have lots of gold—"

    "Not that kind of pay back," Shiva said. She leaned forward and quickly captured his lips with hers. Harry remained frozen in shock for a moment before deepening the kiss. It was a short kiss, both of them pulled away from each other after a few seconds, but it was fun nonetheless.

    "You know, I'm liking that tongue ring more and more," Shiva purred, she glanced at the clock on his desk and suddenly jumped away from him with a yelp.

    "Ahhh! I've got to get back to Tai! He probably thinks I've raped you! And don't think I won't!" She said heatedly at Harry's disbelieving laugh, "I will return for the rest of my 'payment'."

    "Tell Tai he's got himself an ally," He said softly.

    Shiva smiled at him before disappearing from Private Drive

**DODODODODODODODODO... DUM

* * *

**

See? Wasn't that fast? Ok, as you can see I'm mixing a bunch of stories together but hey—whatcha gunna do right?

And it looks like Tai's got some competition...


	16. The Prophecy Revealed: Time is up, Genna...

**Chapter 16**

"So," Angela asked cheerfully as she towel dried the dishes, "how did it go?"

"Shiva was a menace-"

"It was so much fun! Harry was so cute and he had a British accent and I got to dress him up and corrupt him and everything!" Shiva gushed.

Griff, who was sitting on a counter watching his girlfriend from behind, gave a low whistle and looked meaningfully at Tai. Tai huffed moodily, lifted himself onto the counter next to him, and joined Griff in watching the backs of the two conspiring, giggling women.

"Was it that bad?" Griff asked quietly when.

"No," Tai answered truthfully, "But it wasn't supposed to take so long either. Shiva turned the whole damn thing into a shopping-for-Harry day."

"You're just jealous because I'm madly in love with him." Shiva called over her shoulder.

"No I just—wait—WHAT?"

Shiva laughed and flicked some bubbles from the sink at him.

"Oh my God, Tai, I was just joking." She paused thoughtfully for a moment, "But he did smell rather nice for a human..."

"Shiva, be normal," Angela grimaced.

Tai pouted and looked helplessly at Griff, "Griffin... she doesn't like how we smell right now."

Griff looked wide eyed back at Tai with a similar pout on his face, "I—I don't think I handle this kind of discrimination."

"It's racism, that's what it is!" Tai declared smashing a fist into his palm, "Its human oppression!"

"How dare she!" Griff gasped, "Let's attack her."

"Let's."

Shiva was able to give one feeble squeak before two young men, almost twice her size, came bounding after her as she ran throughout the house.

Less than five minutes later Angela joined the fun, siding with Shiva, and adding pillows to the mix.

And so another encounter was recorded in the renowned "Battle of the Sexes".

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o 

"Where the hell is she?" Griff growled as he blasted a vademon out of his way. Three more replaced it and Griff worked to delete them as well. Ever since they had acquired the prophecy, Moira had doubled her attacks on innocent villages, hoping to draw out and destroy the new Guardians before they became too powerful. The only strange part was that Moira wasn't present for any of the attacks. In fact, no one had seen her for the past couple of months.

"Look, just forget about her. The sooner we take care of these shit heads the sooner I can take a bath," Angela growled as she summoned a small tidal wave from the river to wipe out about twenty virus digimon.

"It's always about the hygiene isn't it," Shiva muttered to Tai.

Tai laughed, sending a shower of flames from his palm at a group of gazimon advancing on some innocent rookies, "Yeah well, you know how she gets when she's dirty."

Shiva jumped over Tai's head, landed behind him, and began running her fingers up and down his wings. Tai swallowed hard.

"But you like girls dirty, don't you Tai...?"

"Not here Shiva," Tai moaned and extracted himself from her reach. Shiva just bared her fangs at him before jumping into another fray.

_What has gotten into her? _Tai wondered as he watched her decapitate a flymon a bit more viciously than necessary. He had never seen her take to anyone as quickly as she did to Harry and she seemed more jealous than usual whenever he was around Moira. She never had a problem with any other girl he was with.

A chorus of screams drew his attention to his right where a tuskmon was advancing on a group of botamon. He bent his knees, preparing for a quick launch when a web came out of nowhere, slamming him into the ground. The sticky substance clung to his feathers and firmly anchored him to the soil. Tai glowered at the dokugumon scuttling behind him. He struggled to lift his hand, but was just able to manage a small blast of fire from his finger which only served to knock the digimon back a few feet.

Swearing, Tai looked frantically back at the botamon. The tuskmon had fired an attack at the helpless babies—one that would destroy them in a matter of seconds. No one could save them.

"NO!" Tai cried, his fingers digging into the dirt as he watched the attack near its target. Every fiber of his being was willing the botamon to move as a thousand thoughts rushed through his head. Where were the others? Was he the only one who had noticed this? This couldn't be happening—they were only babies. _He would not allow it._

The ground glowed blue just as the attack hit the area where the botamon were a moment before. From Tai's position on the ground he had seen everything. It was as if the Botamon had fallen through the glowing, blue hole underneath them and popped back up not twenty feet away out of another blue hole. This all happened before Tai could blink an eye. But something told him he was responsible for it, and it left him panting on the ground, purely exhausted. Whatever he had done, it saved them.

A sudden, sharp blow to his side left him gasping for breath a few feet away from where he was a moment ago. He gazed up at the dokugumon he had completely forgotten about. Fortunately the hit freed him of the web and he was able to leap to his feet. Tai drew his sword and quickly swung it in an arc. An inferno of fire consumed both the dokugumon and the tuskmon, leaving nothing but bits of data.

Tai blew air out of his mouth slowly and turned around to see that many of the aggressors had been dealt with. Shiva and Angela were clearing up the rest of them and Griff was standing away from Tai, gaping at him.

"What the hell was that blue flashy thingy?" Griff asked Tai accusingly.

"I don't know," Tai winced and clamped a hand to his side, trying to slow the blood flow from the heavy wound he received.

"Well let's just get back to Gennai so Tai can get that looked at and I can take a shower," Angela stated primly. Shiva rolled her eyes and follwed along with Tai and Griff.

0o0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o0o 

"So what was it?" Tai asked. He was sitting atop one of the infirmary beds patiently waiting for Professoramon to bandage his side. Aside from being their academics teacher; she was also a skilled nurse.

Gennai leaned heavily on his cane (the guardians insisted he started using one) and smiled joyfully at Tai, bringing many more wrinkles to his weary face.

"You opened a portal," he answered simply.

Tai blinked at him, and then winced as Professoramon poured a burning solution on his wound.

"What do you mean 'opened a portal'? You mean like Ace does?"

"That's exactly what I mean."

"But...Is that...that's not possible…is it?"

"Until now I thought it wouldn't be. You're more in tune with the digital world that I ever dreamed to imagine. This is very good news."

Tai smiled tightly, "Well, I can certainly see how it would be beneficial, but I'm not sure if I can do it again. I mean, it was pretty taxing."

"That's why you must practice, my boy. I believe with enough practice you could do it at will."

"Are you going to train me?" Tai asked. As eager as he was to learn how to open portals effectively, Gennai was not in any condition to be teaching him anything. He did not want to make Gennai's condition worse for his sake.

"I afraid I won't be able to," he sighed, "I have no experience in the matter. Nor does any living thing in the digital world. You may get something out of Ace, but for everything else... just go by trial and error.

"Trial and error?" Tai repeated incredulously, "Gennai! I could blow someone up!"

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth," Gennai interrupted, "It's a miracle you have this ability in the first place. If you ever do master this technique, try opening portals to and from the real world."

Tai just rolled his eyes.

"Alright," he muttered.

"Good—now call everyone to the meeting room. I've got something that might interest you."

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o 

"You've decoded it?" Angela squealed, almost springing from her seat.

"For the most part yes," Gennai responded. The guardians of the digital world were currently seated at meeting room table on which the prophesy lay.

"So?" Shiva prompted impatiently, "what is it?"

Gennai sighed and leaned over the stone tablet in front of him.

"_A solitary year signals the death of one and birth of another—_

_The third return of the true enemy brings—_

_The returns of the souls of a millennium's wait—_

_Should the new hope fail the land will be swept in darkness—_

_Until comes the sacrifice of a touched heart…"_

A deafening silence followed as the occupants of the room thought about the meaning of these words.

"...I don't get it."

"Me either."

"Same here."

"yeah—fuck this."

Angela smacked Shiva up side the head.

"Please, please, take the time to think it over. I guarantee you'll understand more of it," Gennai said knowingly.

"Well," Griff began, "it says '_A solitary year signals the death of one and birth of another_' and we've been here for one year exactly."

"Have we really?" Angela asked, amazed that the time had passed so quickly.

"He's right," Tai agreed, "Which means this prophecy will come into effect soon. '_The third return of the true enemy brings_'—who is the true enemy? I mean, is it implying that Moira isn't our real enemy?"

"She can't be, can she?" Shiva asked, suddenly coming to a realization, "someone had to resurrect her for us to be born...there's someone working as the puppet master."

"And what enemy has come to power twice so far?" Griff added. Gennai watched his successors proudly as they discussed the contents of the prophecy; a knowing, but sad twinkle in his eye.

"Well the third line is clear enough," Angela put in, "_'the returns of the souls of a millennium's wait_'—that's referring to our reincarnated souls. And the next line, '_Should the new hope fail the land will be swept in darkness_'...HA!"

"What? Do you get it?" Tai asked eagerly. Griff and Shiva looked on just as eager.

"I was right," Angela stated smugly to Shiva, "It was darkness."

Shiva stared at her for a moment, confused, before looking down at the engraved runes. She remembered their argument in Bastion Hall.

"Damn," Shiva moaned as she realized what Angela was saying.

"Can we please get back to the issue here?" Tai glowered at them, "I think the last part means something like: if we fail darkness will take over and only a sacrifice can fix things."

"Yeah, that's pretty much what I got," Griff conceded, "What do you think Gennai?"

Gennai smiled sadly at them, preparing to leave, "I believe that you all handled interpreting the prophecy and that you now are all mature and powerful enough of officially take my place."

"Shut it old man—you're not going anywhere. We still can't cook our own dinner," Shiva responded. Gennai closed his eyes tiredly; his body seemed to sag raggedly under the weight of his age.

"'_...the death of one and birth of another_'," Tai mumbled to himself softly. _The death of one_...that couldn't mean—

Tai raised his eyes to watch as Gennai stood and slowly made his way across the room, his cane clunking heavily on the floor with the added pressure. Before he reached the door he let out a loud, hoarse cough...followed by another and another. The cane fell to the floor, a loud, hollow sound causing the guardians to rise to their feet in alarm. Gennai's body soon followed, the coughs becoming too much for his weak frame to handle.

"Gennai!" they cried as one, each racing to his side. The old man moaned and let out another throaty cough.

"Griff, go get Professoramon and tell her about Gennai. Tell her to go to his bedroom," Tai instructed, gently lifting the smaller man in his arms. He walked past Shiva, who was shaking, and a tearful Angela. Griff had already taken off.

Professoramon spent a good hour in Gennai's room while the others waited somberly in the hallway.

"He knew this was going to happen," Tai broke the silence. He had an arm around Shiva, who was still shaking silently.

"What do you mean?" Griff asked.

"'_A solitary year signals the death of one…'_'; he knew he was going to die in a year after we came here."

Angela let out a sob and buried her face into Griff's chest. He was looking on in shock, as though just realizing the implication of the statement.

"He can't die!" Shiva exclaimed desperately, "We still need him! The war isn't even over!"

"I really don't think we have a say in this," Tai quietly said, staring ahead.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o 

Later that night, Tai knocked softly on Gennai's door, entering at the muffled response to enter. He slipped inside to see Gennai lying weakly on his comfortable king-sized bed. The old man looked pale and his breathing was labored.

"Gennai?" Tai asked gently, closing the door behind him, "How are you feeling?"

Gennai gave his young charge a weak smile, "I've been better, my boy. Come...have a seat."

Tai crawled on top of the covers and leaned against the headboard of the bed.

"My time is almost up," Gennai began. Tai swallowed, knowing where the conversation was going, "You will have to take my place as guardian over the digital world along with the others. I know you can handle this responsibility. You've grown well and your powers are great—"

Gennai broke off in a series of coughs.

"I don't think I do this without you," Tai said as he slid down the headboard so that he was lying next to Gennai. Gennai looked into Tai's chocolate eyes to find uncertainty along with unshed tears. He laid a cold, wrinkled hand on Tai's warm cheek and smiled tiredly.

"It's ok to be afraid, Tai. Having fear does not make you a coward. Facing it the way you have been is what truly marks you as the bearer of courage. I could not be more proud. There are no one's hands I would rather place the safety of the digital world in than yours."

Tai let out a chocked sob—one he had been holding in for so long—and hugged the man he had come to regard as a father and mentor. Gennai raised a hand and weakly patted Tai's back. The door creaked open to reveal Angela. She spotted Gennai in his bed and Tai cuddled next to him with his head tucked under Gennai's chin.

"Mind if I join?" she asked shyly. At the two smiles she received, she climbed onto the other side of the bed and snuggled into Gennai's free side. Soon after, Griff and Shiva appeared. Shiva climbed in next to Tai and Griff next to Angela. That was where they spent the rest of the night; talking about all the good times and eventually falling into a peaceful sleep.

As the clock struck midnight, Gennai—warm in his bed and surrounded by the children who he had come to love as his own—breathed his last breath before passing away.

...Hundreds of miles away, the silence of the night was broken with fresh screams.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o 

I'm sorry for taking so long. I have been keeping busy with my other fic. This one was sad though wasn't it? I apologize for the stupidity of the prophecy...I'm just no good at stuff like that. Ah-well… thanx for the reviews!


	17. The Final Battle: get back in that hole!

**Chapter 17**

Tai stepped away from fading blue light from the computer of his old room in the real world and made his way to the kitchen where he heard the happy voices of his family enjoying dinner.

"TAI!"

Despite his desolate mood, Tai grinned as he swept his mother into a hug and lifted her off her feet. Mrs. Kamiya squealed happily and departed from her son so she could properly look him over.

"Just look at you! You're all grown up! Oh honey, look at him!" she cried. Tai's father grinned as he walked forward and clapped a hand on Tai's shoulder. Tai was almost as tall as him now.

"So what calls for the visit, son?"

Tai's smile began to fade and a haunted look replaced his features.

"What's wrong Tai?" Kari asked, stepping up to him.

"Kari," Tai began softly, "last night Gennai passed away—," Kari gasped and clamped a hand over her mouth, "We buried him by the lake that his house used to be under," she was shaking her head as tears welled in her eyes.

"Gennai?" his mother asked confusedly. She seemed very worried as she watched her daughter's small frame begin to rack with sobs, "Who is he?"

"He was like... family," Tai began, not sure how to describe him to his parents. He didn't want them to feel like he had replaced them while he was away.

"Oh," his father said blankly, "Kari, hunny, why don't you go to bed?"

Kari shook her head and extracted herself form her mother's arms.

"No, I have to tell the others," she said thickly and sniffled.

"You can tell them in the morning," Tai said, "you should go to bed now, you look tired."

Kari nodded numbly and wiped her eyes with the back of her hands, "are you staying?"

"No, I have to get back to the digital world," Tai said. The prophecy had already begun and Tai could not leave the other guardians alone if something did happen, "I have to leave now. I just thought you should know. Sorry if I ruined your meal."

"No Tai, thank you for telling us. Take care of yourself."

"You too," he smiled wanly.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

"So Kari, why'd you call us here?" Sora asked as she cuddled into Matt on the park bench. The Digidestined were all called to meet at the park that morning after receiving a grave phone call from her.

"Tai came over last night," Kari began slowly.

"Well, where is he?" Davis asked, "He can't have left already?"

"Yes. He came to give us a message," Kari took a quivering breath, "Gennai died—,"

This was immediately met with many gasps and cries of 'No'.

"—the other night in his sleep. I'm going over there today to pay my respects."

She looked at all the eyes filled with tears and disbelief.

"Me too," Yolie said strongly. Kari gave her an appreciative smile.

"And me," Sora added.

"We'll all go," Matt, said decisively, "my band practice can wait. Do you know where he's buried Kari?"

"Yes, Tai said it was by the lake where he used to live."

"Let's go to my house and we'll all leave from there," Izzy volunteered. The rest of the digidestined agreed, and they all started making their way across the park towards Izzy's place. TK stayed behind with Kari, who was walking more slowly.

"Are you all right Kari?" TK asked, putting a concerned arm around her shoulders. She sighed and slipped her arm around his waist.

"It was just so sudden, you know?"

"Yeah, it was."

"And I feel bad for Tai," she continued, "He was the closest to Gennai out of any of us, even the other guardians."

"Hmm," TK agreed, "Don't worry so much Kari, Tai's a strong person. He'll pull through for us. He always does."

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

"Tai come inside!" Shiva called to the young man currently standing over the bright blue hole in the ground. The sun was setting and he had been outside since that morning. It had been a week since the death of Gennai and everyone seemed to be on edge for when the rest of the prophecy would finally play out.

Tai sighed in a frustrated manner and without breaking his concentration replied, "I'm busy."

"You've been out there all day! Hell-you've been out there all day, everyday! Give it a rest."

"Gennai wanted me to learn this so damnit, I'm gunna learn it!"

"But he didn't want you to torture yourself over it!" Shiva argued, "Let's finish the battle. Finish Moira. And then you'll have all the time you want to work on it."

"Moira isn't our enemy here, she's just a pawn. And I have to learn it now! Not only would it be advantageous for this war, but also for the war against Voldemort should Harry call on us."

Shiva growled seeming a bit peeved that he was still defending Moira.

"Fine! Work yourself to death! And damnit—I'm so fucking horney!"

Shiva screamed into the night air.

"Well don't look at me. I'm busy," Tai called back.

"Fine! I'm going to Harry's then!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

Shiva turned on her heal and marched inside. Tai scowled and began focusing on making the hole spread. There was something very wrong with Shiva. She always wanted to have sex, and whenever he refused her she would become furious and run off to Potter's place where, undoubtedly, she would get what she was looking for. It did upset Tai that she would treat him so cheaply. Not to mention the fact that she would become green with jealously if he so much as looked at another girl in her presence. In Tai's anger he didn't notice the hole below him suddenly fly open in all directions.

"WOAH!" Tai cried as he plunged downward.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

"Tai...are you all right?" Angela asked the next morning.

"Yeah," he replied blandly, trying to make his cheerios chase each other with his spoon.

"Are you upset about Shiva?" she asked briskly. Tai dropped his spoon and looked at her.

"No."

"Because she didn't come back last night. What is this...the fifth time she's run off to his place?"

"I. Don't. Care." Tai ground out. And he didn't. Really.

"Um, how's your portal thing going?" Griff asked, shooting his girlfriend a shut-up-or-die look. Tai immediately brightened.

"It's amazing! I can pretty much manipulate the data on the ground anywhere in the digital world. I think I might try vertical portals next."

"Sweet," Griff replied, "think you can get it to work in the real world?"

Angela spoke before Tai could answer him.

"Well look who's decided to join us," Angela said, spotting Shiva peeking in from the doorway, "Go, on… grace us with your presence…"

Shiva bit her lip and stepped into the kitchen.

"Do you have any idea what time it is young lady?" Griff asked sternly. Angela rolled her eyes and flicked a cheerio up his nose.

"I was talking to Inu Yasha," she said lamely. She received unimpressed looks from around the table, "well, um, after Harry left."

"Shiva, what the hell is wrong with you?" Tai snapped finally.

"W-well, it's kind of, um, weird."

Tai snorted, "yeah I noticed, since you've turned into this psycho hormonal bitch the last few weeks!"

Shiva dropped her face into her hands.

"Tai follow me," she mumbled staring towards her room.

She noticed Angela and Griff getting up to follow them

"Sit!" she commanded, "this concerns Tai _only_."

"Alright," Tai began as soon as she closed the door, "you better have a good explanation for this because I'm getting really sick of it."

Shiva blushed rather heavily and mumbled something under her breath.

"What?" Tai asked, not catching what she was saying.

"I know what's wrong with me..." she said again.

"You mean why you want to fuck the shit out of everybody and won't let me near anyone with a vagina?"

Shiva looked away and nodded.

"Well...?"

"Inu Yasha said—I spoke with him this morning—and he said...um, he said that it was normal for me to be like this at this age."

Tai looked at her, "and why would this be normal?"

Shiva's face, if anything, became even redder.

"I'minheat" she mumbled really quickly.

"You're a what?" Tai asked, still not getting it.

"I'M IN HEAT!" Shiva yelled, "That's why I want to 'fuck the shit out of everybody' as you so eloquently put it! All female demons of half blood or more will go through this faze and pick out potential mates and won't let them near other women until she's chosen one or it's passed!"

Tai blinked, completely speechless. That was all said in one breath. The door crashed open and Griff and Angela came tumbling in.

"Um..." Griff said intelligently from his spot on the floor.

"ARRRGH" Shiva cried as she threw herself face down onto the bed. Tai moved over to her, suddenly feeling sorry for her.

"Hey, hey. It's alright," he said, lightly scratching her lower back. He knew how she loved it. Sure enough, a low rumble resounded from her chest. Who would have thought that demon's purr? "Now how long will this last?"

Shiva lifted her head out of the pillow, "For one month every year."

"Oh," Tai breathed, "and um, who are your potential mates?"

"Well you're one, obviously. And the other is Harry."

Tai remained silent.

"Does that make you mad? When I go over to Harry's?" she asked sadly.

"Not...mad," Tai answered tentatively. He wasn't sure what it made him feel. He wasn't happy about it.

"Tai!" the guardians looked up in alarm as Piximon hurtled himself into the room.

"We've got a problem, yup, yup."

"He even yup's when there's a problem," Griff muttered cynically to Angela as they all raced down hall following Piximon.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

Less than five minutes later all the guardians found themselves back on Tenbit Island. There was no snow any more, just barren, scorched land stretching as far as the horizon. All signs of life in the region were completely wiped out. The only thing recognizable in the area was the looming stronghold of Bastion Hall.

"Oh my god," Angela breathed, "what happened?"

"It looks like its time for the rest of the prophecy to take place," Tai said stiffly. The land was silent for a second longer before an earth shattering noise tore through the stillness. A long crevice appeared in the ground, only feet away from the castle, and from it raised a figure that Tai had prayed he would never see again.

"Myotismon," he breathed in disbelief.

"Who the hell is that guy?" Griff asked staring at the digimon before him.

"My sentiments exactly," Shiva added with a look of disgust. This Myotismon was as large as Malomyotismon but with a more grisly appearance. There were chains draped all over his body, mixed with black blood oozing from various cuts on his body. He still had the same mask over his face, but his blonde hair was now pitch-black.

"So you remember me young guardian of courage. I was hoping you would. It would make sucking the blood from your body all the more delightful."

Tai grimaced and said quietly to the others, "It makes sense now. As a digidestined we faced him twice before. Each time he had a different appearance."

"So what do we do first?" Griff asked, at a loss.

"Wait till he attacks first," Tai answered.

"Are you sure he's even hostile?" Angela asked, though she seemed unsure herself.

"Angela," Shiva spoke in the same hushed tones as the others, "he just said he wanted to suck Tai's blood."

Before anything more could be said, all four guardians dived in every direction as a red beam of light crashed into the ground between them.

"Alright," Tai yelled, "now we can attack."

He drew his sword from behind his back and launched into the air. He and Griff started off with a double attack with Tai throwing a stream of fire at his face and Griff crushing the earth below his feet. The vampire digimon flew to the side with alarming speed and dodged both attacks. Without missing a beat, he sent a cloud of bats in their direction. One half of the bats flew towards Tai with the intent of biting his wings. The other half flew strait at Griff. Before either party reached them however the bats were frozen in mid-flight. Shiva grinned; arms outstretched, and motioned for them to continue attacking. Angela, Tai and Griff all simultaneously fired their most powerful attacks at the virus digimon. He easily dodged every one.

"Fuck!" Griff yelled, "He's too damn fast."

"Shiva—you think you can slow him down for us?" Tai called to her. She nodded firmly and turned to face their enemy. Before she could so much as lift a hand, a large blast of cold air hit her square in the back, releasing her hold on the bats.

"Son of a—"she started, looking behind her. Moira smirked and waved haughtily. Shiva growled and bared her fangs at her. The two women simultaneously leapt at each other, clashing in mid air in a serious of kicks and punches. Tai, after barbequing the loose bats from Myotismon, seemed torn between continuing to attack their enemy and helping out Shiva.

"Tai!" Angela snapped, "Focus on _him_."

Tai nodded and continued to attack with the other guardians, leaving Shiva to deal with Moira.

"This is not a good week to mess with Tai in front of me," Shiva ground out, dodging around the spiked icicles that were shot at her.

"Don't you dare start with me," Moira shrieked, "This entire thing is your fault! _You killed him!"_

Shiva stopped fighting for a second, allowing Moira to hit her in the stomach with a powerful blast of cold air. Shiva crashed into a rock, crumbing it.

"You had to kill them all, you drove me to madness, and then you had the nerve to say your sorry!"

Shiva watched as Moira advanced on her, one fuming step after another. What the hell was she talking about?

"Alright bitch, you're rambling now," she said, looking at Moira as if she were a lunatic. Moira gave a most unladylike snarl and attacked again.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, _Amara_. Drop the innocent act."

Shiva stared at her. She understood now. Moira was confusing the past with the present. She really was mad.

"Moira, I am not Amara. I'm Shiva. And he's Tai," She spoke slowly pointing to the demi-god flying around Myotismon, "you are the one killing everyone now."

Moira shook her head, either not listening or just not wanting to believe it.

"I will kill you for killing him!"

She shot five pointed icicles at the half demon which grazed her side after an attempt to dodge them. Shiva retaliated with blasting Moira away with an invisible force.

"Oh, it's on."

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

Angela, Tai and Griff weren't gaining any ground with the Myotismon situation.

"_Crimson lightning!_" he roared. The ruby whip wound in a circle and stuck the three guardians, sending them flying in all directions. He then glanced disdainfully at his underling, fighting fiercely against the demon guardian. He had tired of her petty emotions and madness long ago—she had served her purpose.

"I have no more use for you," he sneered. He lashed the whip at her this time, narrowly missing Shiva. A sickening crack was heard throughout the austere battlefield, and Moira fell to the ground in a mass of broken bones and blood, but still alive. Shiva stared between her enemy...and her other enemy. And then shrugged. One less job for her.

Lifting herself off the ground first, Angela summoned a geyser of water to erupt right beneath Myotismon, catching him off guard. Before he could collect his composure, Griff slammed into the back of his knees, hard and fast, sending the beast crashing into the earth. Tai shot into the air, lifted his sword above his head and swung it downward. A jet of fire sliced down the middle of the virus digimon. Black blood squirted in all directions.

"Whoo!" Griff screamed enthusiastically. Angela laughed and jumped in his arms.

"Did we do it?" she asked stimulated as Griff swung her around.

A loud tearing sound shredded the brief moment of piece as everyone in the vicinity stopped and stared at the body.

"Guys," Tai said warningly. The massive body of Myotismon slowly began to pull apart. Multiple, clawed arms stretched out of the corpse, extending into three, repulsive bat creatures. Each one an immense figure of scars and sharp teeth and looking like they came strait out of hell.

"Oh," Shiva said happily, "he had a back up plan."

Two of the three beasts snapped their heads towards her, effectively shutting her up. They charged at her.

Shiva screamed and immediately turned around and jumped into one of the crevices in the ground behind her.

"Where did we go wrong with her?" Angela asked sadly. Before anyone could reply to that, the third creature leapt towards her, and was thrown off course as Griff body-checked it from the side. Angela squealed happily as if Griff just proposed to her and kissed him soundly. They were so caught up in each other that they didn't even notice the surge of wild fire shooting behind them nor the deafening, dying screech that mixed with it.

"Can you keep your damn hands off each other until after we deal with the spawns?" Tai yelled.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

Shiva grunted as she pulled herself up from her safe haven in the ground. The area above had seemed pretty quiet so she was confident that the others had taken care of the situation all ready. It wasn't that she couldn't take one of them; it was that she had seen them before. And she didn't want to see what would happen subsequently. With one final pant she pulled herself to her feet.

"I'M ALIVE!" She screamed into the air with her arms wide open. Her rejoicing was cut off by a deadly growl. No more than twenty feet away were the two creatures that had chased her down the hole in the first place. They eyed her in an aggressive manner, pools of drool hitting the ground as they bared their teeth. She knew she was in no mood to fight them at the moment.

"I WAS JUST KIDDING!" she yelled reassuringly back at them before jumping back into the crevice.

Tai watched from the side with an unimpressed look on his face. Gennai would be rolling over in his grave at the moment. And laughing his ass off at them. Just as he was planning to go help Shiva with the two spawns (she was still hiding in the crevice) a low, threatening laugh reached his ears.

"I've always wondered how a god will fare in hell," a deep voice chuckled from the torn, prone form of Myotismon. Tai gasped and opened his mouth to warn the others but was cut off as two black ropes of burning plasma shot out from the ground and tightly wrapped themselves around Tai's wings. The left wing was broken instantly. The plasma spread beneath his feet and began to devour his body, sucking him into the unknown below the earth. More binds shot up to speed up the process, wrapping around his neck and limbs, choking him.

"Tai!" Griff yelled, disentangling himself from Angela. He started towards his friend when he was thrown to the ground by one of the remaining two beasts. The fiend wasted no time in biting into his neck.

Angela screamed for him but was silenced as the other one jumped on her back. Shiva leapt out of the crevice at once after seeing her two friends struggling against Myotismon's incarnates at a clear disadvantage. Tai's cries and struggles from her left drew her attention to a scene she had vision before. His body was steadily being pulled into the endless, black oblivion beneath him, killing him along the way. She stumbled to him, falling to her knees.

"No" she cried. It happened. She remembered this and she could do nothing to stop it. But that was the problem, not the solution. She pulled her self to her feet with more determination than she ever thought she possessed. She glared hatefully at the two unnamed beasts attacking her friends and suddenly, as if her glare alone was that powerful, they stopped...and soon started to convulse. It was happening too fast to stop herself. The churning anger burned in the pit of her stomach as she watched the dying creatures writhe on the ground. Their bodies were literally imploding and all the while she couldn't help but feel something horrifyingly akin to satisfaction. Griff and Angela managed to stand at this point and watch in appall at what was happening. When the process stopped, all that was left was a pile of gory skin, the bones within ground into a fine dust. Shiva tried to steady her breathing and control herself. Angela ran up to her and began trying to get her respond, but Shiva wouldn't stop shaking. Griff, in the meantime, was throwing everything he had at the bonds from hell to free Tai, but they would only lash out at him

The body of Myotismon began to lift from the ground; the center of it hung open, leaving a gaping hole where the incarnates broke through it.

"It's time I disposed of you," he howled, allowing his voice to echo through the barren wasteland for effect, "And everything that you would hold dear."

He lifted his arm and threw one powerful attack at the castle, setting it ablaze.

"No!" Moira screamed, reaching a bloodied hand toward the fortress. Tears were streaming down her face. Tai finally pulled himself free of the black plasma in a true godlike show of strength and ran over to the woman he should have never loved. He dropped to her side and cradled her broken body.

"Taro," she coughed, spitting up blood. Her eyes gazed up at the red sky unseeingly, "...Tai...the castle...our...she—"

She began coughing more violently, covering Tai's chest with her blood. With every cough Tai felt a part of him dying. A heart-wrenching stab of pain that strongly made him want to die with her.

"She what?" he prompted, "what about the castle?"

But Moira's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she fell limp within his arms. Tai froze, ignoring the cries of anguish from his friends as Myotismon attacked them. An iron clamp of throbbing pain compressed down on his chest, squeezing him into agony. Was this what it felt like to loose a mate?

Suddenly the body in his arms began to cool. Much more than a regular dead body should. It was freezing. Tai watched in disbelief as her body began to case itself in ice. The ice spread, avoiding his body, and began sheeting the ground. It moved quickly, eventually covering all the lands in a thick layer of ice. Soon it began to work its way up Myotismon's body. The viral digimon's evil laughter was cut short as the ice held his legs fast to the ground. Soon his torso was encased as well. Then his neck, and finally his head—successfully silencing him. Tai didn't waste any time in taking advantage of this.

"Attack him now!" he roared to his comrades. They didn't need to be told twice. Outrageous blasts of fire, water, earth, and an invisible force flew to the ice cased digimon. Every element combined, slowly breaking down every part of the demon's body before all that remained was a mask. A heavy booted foot crushed it, sending it into the oblivious of the digi-afterlife as well. Griff looked up in satisfaction. His girlfriend looked more beautiful than he ever remembered, covered in blood and grime, with her scratched blue skin and webbed fan ears. Shiva stood next to her, still shaking from earlier, but also grinning like a maniac. In fact she was dancing too. Oh god—it was the booty dance. Looking away, Griff noticed Tai was not among them. After looking around, he just spotted a brown-haired youth, now human, running into the burning fortress of Bastion Hall.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

Never ending wails traveled through the burning hallways of Bastion Halls. Tai continued to follow the cries until he came to a closed door surrounded by fire. All it needed was one, hard kick and it came crashing down in an explosion of ashes and embers. In the middle of the room, with globes of fire falling around it like a hailstorm was a single crib, remarkably untouched. Tai grimly walked towards it, careful to avoid any fallen debris, and peered inside. The cries instantly stopped.

He could no longer hear the roaring inferno rushing pass his ears, nor did he feel the heat of the flames against his skin. He didn't care that the ceiling was collapsing all around him and the floor was giving away. All that mattered was that he was staring into a pair of large chocolate-brown eyes—identical to his own.

His mouth opened and closed, emitting no sound as he stared down at the infant in front of him. _Ours_.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

And Tai suffers the consequences of not practicing safe sex. Shame on him.

I will be off on holiday for the next week so nothing new too soon, sorry. Thanks for the reviews though! They make me happy. And if I'm happy, so are my cats. And that's all that matters.


	18. Chelsea: Men cannot assemble properly

**Chapter 18**

Griff rubbed his hands over his tired face and rested his elbows on the kitchen table.

"We...have a kid..."

"And isn't she just adorable?" Angela cooed, tickling the gurgling baby's stomach.

"...A kid..."

"How are we going to take care of her?" Shiva asked as she held out her index finger for the child to hold on to. Its grip was already unnaturally strong for her age and size.

"There is a kid...right...there..."

Angela looked pityingly at her spaced out boyfriend, "What is it with men and babies? It's like they're afraid of them. Speaking of which, how is Tai doing?"

Shiva's shoulders sagged a little.

"Still asleep, I think. He's depressed. Loosing a mate really is as bad as it sounds. We'll be lucky if he doesn't go insane like Moira did...oh, God damn it! This is so unfair! It wasn't him who mated with her it was Taro. He just got pulled into this whole thing by mistake. He didn't ask for any of it!"

"No one did, Shiva. And don't swear in front of the baby!"

"Can't we...just give it to an orphanage or something?" Griff spoke up suddenly.

"NO!" the two girls cried suddenly, causing the cyborg to shrink back.

"Do you really think an orphanage would accept anyone looking like this?"

Shiva took the kid from Angela's arms and held it in the air. A pair of soft, feathery black wings made little flaps as the girl giggled and drooled.

"Shiva! You can't handle children like that!"

"What? She's part demon and part god—I could drop her on her head and she would love it."

"That's not the point..."

"Well what about Primary Pillage? It's been mostly renovated and Electmon would love her," Griff suggested.

"No," Angela said instantly, "she's the only thing that seems to make Tai happy. Probably because she has some of Moira in her."

Shiva nodded, "I'll go check on him now."

She cradled the baby in her arms and left the kitchen. When she reached Tai's room she saw him lying on his bed with his back facing the door. He was too still to be sleeping so she approached him and sat on the end of the bed. Sure enough, Tai slowly turned on his back and looked at her, forcing a half-hearted smile on his face. Her heart almost broke in two at the torment and pain that flooded his once radiant eyes.

Supporting the girl in her left arm, she climbed over to him, as he pushed himself up a little, and handed him the baby before snuggling into his side. Tai draped one arm over Shiva and used the other to hold his daughter to his chest. His smile widened and his eyes lightened a little; whenever he held her the pain seemed to lessen a little. The child seemed to realize she was with her father and snuggled into his chest, fisting his shirt in her little hands.

"What's her name?" Shiva asked, petting the girl's soft head by running her hand over the tuff of brown hair.

"Hmm...I don't know. I was think something like Chelsea or Makaio."

"I like Chelsea"

"Yeah? Me too. Hey Chelsea, like your name?"

Chelsea squealed and flopped her arms around as drool pooled from her gummed mouth.

"She loves it," Shiva interpreted. Tai swallowed hard and stared at the baby.

"I don't think I'm ready for this..." he groaned, the haunted look returning to his eyes.

"You can face down hordes of evil digimon but you can't take care of a little baby?"

"...Yes."

Shiva giggled, "Don't worry. You have the rest of us to help you. Beside, just think how fortunate are you to have two women in the house right now?"

"I don't think you qualify," Tai grinned, earning a slap on the arm.

"Any way, we have to go to the real world and get her baby things. Like clothes, and food, and formula, and a crib, and toys...all that good stuff."

"Oh shit," Tai whispered, "I completely forgot—my parents—I have to tell my family. Crap."

"It'll be alright Tai," Shiva hushed as she placed a hand on his cheek, "I'll be there with you. Your family is nice, they'll understand. Besides, remember the pregnant suit incident? Your mom loved the idea of grandchildren. Even if it isn't with me..."

Tai raised an eyebrow at her, "You want to have my children?"

"Well, I'd have rather it have been me than that—that...Moira," she huffed.

"Hey, are you guys alright?" Angela asked, sticking her head into the room. She spotted the three of them cuddled together on Tai's bed, "Aww, that's so cute! Let me go get the camera."

She ran back out before anything could be said in their defense. Griff walked in a second later, looking confused.

"Where the hell is she going?"

"To get the camera," Shiva shrugged, "Hey! You want to hold Chelsea? You're the only one who hasn't yet."

Griff made an 'X' mark with his fingers and hissed playfully. Tai looked at Shiva bewildered who rolled her eyes in return.

_FLASH_

The couple blinked the spots out of their eyes as Angela cackled in the background.

"That one is going in my personal collection!"

"You have a personal collection of Tai and Shiva in a bed?" Griff asked stupidly. Angela sighed dramatically.

"Honey, you're cute but try not to talk so much."

"Angela, guess what? Tai named her Chelsea!" Shiva said excitedly.

"Chelsea? That's so pretty!"

"I know, and guess what we're going to do right now?"

"What?"

"Shop for baby supplies!"

"Ohhh!" Angela said excitedly, jumping around. Tai and Griff looked at each other, alarmed.

"When did we agree to this?" Griff asked.

"It doesn't matter if you agree or not! Chelsea needs clothes and formula and baby food and a crib and toys—"

"Okay! I get it, but we can't leave the digital world all alone. Someone has to stay behind," Griff interrupted. The room was silent for a moment, "...I'll stay."

"Yeah, you won't be much use anyway," Angela said.

"Hey!"

"Come on Tai," Shiva said, ignoring Griff, "We'll go to your home town."

"Uhh...alright, but I don't want anyone to know yet..." He trailed, looking decidedly uncomfortable.

"Why not? You have to tell your family some time."

"I know, and I will. But I just want to get settled down with this first."

"Good idea," Angela said, "We wouldn't want you looking irresponsible or anything."

Tai gave her a look that told her to shut up as he got off of the bed and gently held Chelsea over his shoulder.

"What should we do about her wings?" he asked, stroking the soft feathers. The baby cooed happily and burrowed her face into his shoulder.

"I can give her one of my shirts. It should be loose enough on her to hide her wings," Angela offered.

"Alright then!" Shiva exclaimed, "Let's go!"

0o0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o0o

Tai, Angela, and Shiva went to the Odaiba Mall and headed strait for the closest baby store. The first thing they did was buy a baby stroller, which was what Tai used to cart Chelsea around the store as Shiva steered the shopping cart and Angela ran around throwing things in.

"Oh Chelsea would look adorable in these!" Angela sighed as she held up a cute, yellow bunny footie.

"It'll cramp her wings!" Tai said, grabbing it out of her hand and throwing it back on the rack, "We're going to have to find her a ring like ours. I don't want her running around with no shirt on when she's older."

Shiva and Angela shared a look and giggled.

"Already feeling those parental instincts Tai?" Shiva asked with a raised eyebrow as she tossed a pink pacifier and a baby blanket in the shopping cart. Tai just grunted and looked the other way. He paused for a moment before spotting a furniture section.

"We have enough clothes, let's get her a crib and stuff."

They spent the next twenty minutes picking out the perfect crib along with a changing table, and a highchair.

"We need diapers and baby formula and some baby bottles next. Maybe we could buy some baby food too while we're at it, but I don't think she'll be eating it for a while," Angela said.

"I'll go get some right now," Shiva said, abandoning the shopping cart and hurrying over to another part of the store

At the mention of food, Chelsea started to squirm and fuss in her stroller. Tai leaned down and pulled her out of it.

"I think she _is_ hungry."

"Well of course she is! She hasn't eaten since we found her yesterday! Poor thing," Angela said looking sadly at the struggling baby in Tai's arms.

Shiva returned with a bag full of the necessary feeding supplies.

"Alright, let's go pay for these and then we'll grab lunch in the food court," Tai said. He began rubbing soothing circles on Chelsea's back, smoothing the feathers beneath her large shirt, to calm her down. It seemed to have worked.

"You know Tai, she's a very good baby, very quiet," Shiva commented as they made their way to the food court. They sat down at a table and Angela volunteered to go buy the food. Shiva pulled out a bottle filled with formula and then proceeded to show Tai how to hold her while feeding. Chelsea immediately latched onto the bottle and began sucking greedily.

"Damn...She _was_ hungry."

Shiva laughed, "Yeah, you need to angle the bottle more though."

"How do you know so much about babies anyway?" Tai asked as he followed her orders.

"I have a million little cousin's I had to do the same thing for," she answered while blushing a little. Tai shifted a bit and looked down at his daughter. The feel of a baby in his arms felt so foreign to him, and at the same time so natural.

"I still can't believe I have a kid...it all seems so surreal..."

"I know what you mean," Shiva said. She leaned over and ran her hand over the girl's soft head. Chelsea chose to ignore the attention she was receiving and focused solely on her meal.

"Just like her father," Shiva laughed as the bottle was quickly drained, "you need to burp her now."

"How do I do that?" Tai asked.

"Hold her over your shoulder like this and pat her on her back for a while. Be gentle. Here, I'll get you a towel from the bag incase she spits anything up."

Shiva bent down and began rummaging through one of the many bags they had with them before picking out a cloth and draping it over his shoulder. He continued to lightly pat a spot between her hidden wings.

"Tai? Tai Kamiya? Is that you?"

Tai paled as he heard the somewhat familiar voice calling from his right. He had been hoping no one would see him so that he could keep his newest family member a secret for a while longer. He slowly looked up to find none other than Jun Motomiya standing right next to the table they were seated at.

"Jun!" He said aghast. She was the last person he had expected to see. She looked considerably different as well. Her hair was brushed down now, as opposed to the spiked look she used to favor and she seemed a bit less energetic than how he remembered her to be. Across the food court he could see two of her usual giggly girlfriends waiting for her.

"I barley recognized you!" she continued on excitedly, "You've been gone for over a year! I thought you dropped out of school or something. Did you? And whose baby is that?"

Tai blinked at her. All right, maybe she was only a little less energetic.

"Who the hell are you?" Shiva asked blankly. Tai decided to intervene, knowing that the personalities of the two girls would surely clash.

"Shiva, this is Jun. She was interested in Matt, okay? Jun, I didn't drop out of school. I just went to a new one."

Jun smiled generously, "I'm over Matt you know. He's been with Takenouchi too long."

Shiva growled at the suggestive note in her voice and Tai kicked her none-too-lightly under the table.

"So whose baby is this anyway? She's absolutely adorable!"

She leaned in closer to get a better view of the baby who had long since burped and was now dosing off in Tai's arms.

Tai hesitated for a second before replying, "She's...um...mine."

Jun looked up sharply.

"What?"

"She's his," Shiva repeated for him. She was looking at Jun with a bored expression, as if daring her to cause a scene.

Jun gave a short glare at Shiva before looking back at Tai.

"Is this true?"

"Yeah."

"Who's the mother? I mean, if you don't mind me asking."

"She, uh, she's dead," Tai said quietly. Jun gasped

"So you're raising her alone?"

"Hey, he's got me," Shiva said conversationally.

"And me," Angela had arrived with the food and placed a tray in front of each of them.

"Where do you all live?" Jun asked suspiciously, "I take it you don't live with your family."

"No, I don't. And they don't even know about her so please Jun, don't say anything. Not until I tell them," Tai pleaded. Jun sighed, knowing that her gossipy nature was being denied a great treat.

"Fine, I won't. But at least tell me her name."

"It's Chelsea."

"Oh, that's pretty—" She started before she was cut off by her friends impatiently calling for her, "Oh, I have to go. Call me if you're ever in town again!"

"Not likely," Shiva muttered under her breath, watching Jun run off to her friends.

"Hey, you're getting better at this whole let's-let-Tai-talk-to-other-girls thing," Angela said cheerfully, stuffing a French fry in her mouth.

"I try," Shiva responded dryly.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

"Hey hunny," Angela greeted Griff when they returned, "anything interesting happen while we were gone?"

"Not if you don't count Piximon catching on fire," He answered conversationally as he lifted a box for the crib and a few bags of clothes and began following Tai into his room. About a month ago they had finally gotten Gennai to allow them to have their own rooms. At first he wanted them to share so that they could get closer to one another. It had taken him a while to realize they were getting 'closer' with the wrong roommates. It was unanimously decided that Chelsea would sleep in Tai's room for the time being.

"I won't even ask," Angela muttered.

Twenty minutes later the crib and changing table were no more assembled than when they had started. Shiva and Angela, who had finished putting the clothes and food away quite some time ago, watched the boys struggle with great amusement.

"You know...it might help to read the directions..." Angela suggested.

"We're men, we don't need directions," Griff grunted, making Angela moan and roll her eyes.

"All right men," Shiva snorted derisively, "you just better get a move on with that changing table...Chelsea's starting to stink something awful."

Another twenty minutes went by before the girls, fed up and agitated, took over. Ten minutes later, the embodiment of cribs and changing tables were perfectly displayed before their very eyes.

"Well done," Tai said appreciatively. Griff murmured his agreement.

Shiva stood up, dusting off her hands, "And since us girls did all the building—"

"—You boys can change her diaper," Angela finished with a smile. The two girls strode merrily out the door, leaving two bewildered young men and a stinky baby in their wake.

0o0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o0o

Not too long for something that's taken me a month to post, huh? Sorry people, things are pretty crazy in my world. Not to mention I have about 5 MILLION term papers. Lovely.

So Tai has his baby, which he's going to keep. Lol, I know I just randomly threw Jun in there. Anyhoo-next chapter he'll show the 'rents and digidestined his baby. Much drama.

REVIEWREVIEWREVIEW!


	19. The Truth: Don't give that kid steak

**Chapter 19**

"Mom...you know how you've always wanted grandchildren...?"

"This may be hard for you to accept but..."

"I knocked up the enemy and now I have a daughter..."

"What are you doing?"

Tai jumped, almost dropping the dirty diaper in his hand, and spun around to face Shiva. The girl was standing in the doorway looking at him as if he were mad.

"J-just practicing," he replied nervously. Shiva gave him a knowing smile.

"Ah, so you've finally decided to face the 'rents?"

Tai grimaced, "Yeah...I just don't know what the hell to say..."

It had been weeks since he first got his daughter and he had yet to contact his family. Whether it was due to his new busy schedule of raising a baby or his own cowardice, he didn't know. He lightly powdered Chelsea's butt and the infant began kicking and grunting at the contact.

"Hey you," Shiva said, walking over to her. Chelsea granted her a gummy smile and let out a delighted squeal when Shiva picked her up. She had taken to Shiva as a surrogate mother.

"Don't worry about it Tai, I'll be with you," Shiva assured him. Tai smiled at her in relief.

"Thanks."

"Right, let's go," Shiva said prudently as she strode out of the room. Tai faulted in his step to follow her.

"Go where exactly?"

Shiva turned to stare at him, "To your parent's of course!"

The color in Tai's face drained as he swallowed hard, "You mean n-now? I can't! I've got...um...work—,"

"Oh grow some balls and get a move on!" Shiva snapped, tired of his procrastinating, "Well, I'm going with Chelsea whether you're there or not," and with that she began a purposeful stride to Ace.

"Wait! Shiva! Alright, I'm going!"

Tai chased after Shiva trying to boost his confidence with every step. He could do this; after all, he had the crest of courage, hadn't he?

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o 

Three minutes later, standing in his old bedroom, Tai didn't feel nearly as confident. He stared at the door leading to the outside hallway...as well his fated doom.

"Tai, honey, staring at the door isn't going to open it..." Shiva said slowly. Chelsea began to fuss in Shiva's arms, sensing her father's distress.

"Give me her," Tai said absently, reaching for his daughter. Shiva complied and handed her over. Chelsea immediately calmed once she was in Tai's arms, recognizing his scent. He felt her little wings flutter underneath his fingertips as he rubbed her back.

"Okay—let's do this."

He left the room, holding his head of up high. But inside his heart was hammering wildly against his chest. It was evening, so both his parents would be home. Sure enough, turning into the kitchen he saw his father, reading the paper with his socked feet on the table. This let Tai know his mother wasn't nearby for she would never allow such a thing in her presence.

"Dad..."

Mr. Kamiya looked up from his paper, a wide grin instantly spread on his face and he stood to greet his oldest son.

"Tai! Great to have you back son. Oh! And who is this little tyke?" he poked Chelsea on her tummy, as she let out a baby laugh.

"This is Chelsea. She's...my daughter."

Silence reigned in the kitchen for a brief moment as Mr. Kamiya stared wide-eyed at the child in Tai's arms.

"I'm sorry Tai," he laughed suddenly, putting a hand to his temple, "For a minute there I thought you said this was your daughter."

"He did," Shiva declared, standing close enough to Tai for their arms to touch, letting him know she was there for him. The color drained out of his father's face.

"I-I need to go get your mother."

"What do you need me for, dear?" Mrs. Kamiya asked, walking into the room at that moment. She saw Tai and immediately smiled.

"Oh honey! It's so good to see you! And Shiva! How are you dear? Is this one of your cousins?" she asked, pointing to Chelsea. The baby stared at her with wide chocolate eyes, a drizzle of drool seeping off her bottom lip.

"Not exactly..."

"Honey," Mr. Kamiya said while putting an arm around his wife, "Tai here has just informed me that this is his daughter."

The smile fell off Tai's mother's face as she turned to scrutinize the child in her son's arms. There was no denying the resemblance to Tai. She had the same wide, chocolate eyes and brown hair and was already showing signs of the infamous, lopsided, Kamiya grin. She backed away, shaking her head slowly.

"No...that's not possible..." She said unevenly, "You were here a little over a month ago. You would have said something then."

"I didn't know then," Tai said, "She's three months old now—"

"Tai I can't accept this. How could you be so irresponsible?"

"Please, mum, try to understand—"

Mrs. Kamiya looked like she would very much like to smack Tai. Her lips were drawn in a thin white line and her nostrils flared as she took a deep breath through her nose.

"Tai," She said in a shaky, angry voice, "I have been _very_ understanding about you as of late. I have allowed you to receive your education and live in a dangerous place completely out of our reach, not being able to see you for months on end. Now you come back to us with a child and you expect me to welcome you with open arms? After all this time you come to us now?"

Tai shrunk back a little and Shiva decided to step in.

"Wait a minute. It's not really his fault...uh...well yes it is, actually, but he would have come to you sooner if he had known about her!"

She was stretching the truth a little but she couldn't leave Tai to fend for himself in this situation. Mr. Kamiya watched the whole ordeal from the sidelines. While he was very disappointed in Tai, he didn't want to leave him on his own with a child. He was still just a teenager.

"Tai, I really don't know what do tell you," he said. He looked to his wife but she was still in a cantankerous mood and refused to look at Tai.

"Please," Tai said, clutching Chelsea to his chest as if she could somehow give him emotional support, "I haven't come to ask you to take care of her or anything. I just want her grandparent to be apart of her life."

"Let's just go Tai," Shiva said, pulling him along with her back to the bedroom.

"Wait a minute," Mrs. Kamiya said sharply, "Are you the mother?"

"...no..." The subject of Chelsea's mother was still a touchy subject for Shiva.

"Then who is? Why isn't she taking care of the child?"

"Because her mother is dead. Her name was Moira. You can ask Kari about it later. She can contact me if you need to," Tai said tiredly walking out of the room with Shiva in tow.

"Well that wasn't so bad." Shiva said unsurely. Tai said nothing. He just looked down at Chelsea who had fallen asleep in his arms.

"Hey," Shiva said, placing a hand on his arm, "They'll come around. They were just shocked, that's all."

"Yeah..." Tai said unenthusiastically just before a bright blue light filled the room.

When they arrived back at the coliseum they found Angela and Griff silent at the kitchen table.

"What's up?" Tai asked suspiciously, switching Chelsea to his other hip so his arm wouldn't get tired from holding her so long. The trip back had woken her up from her brief nap. He noticed a cell phone in Angela's hand.

"Inu Yasha called," Griff started.

"Isha!" Shiva screamed out excitedly. She immediately began bouncing on the balls of her feet, "Was his voice as deep and luscious as ever?" she asked Angela. Despite the somber mood Angela giggled and nodded, blushing.

"Back to the matters at hand," Griff said evocatively, shooting his girlfriend a dark look, "He called to inform us that Harry literally jumped into a portal to Hell and Shiva will have to put her regular trysts with him on hiatus. And that's verbatim."

"No more magical sex?" Shiva pouted, her bottom lip quivering laughably, "Wait... did you say HELL?"

"Yep."

"What do you mean Hell? Like with all the demons and evilness and shit?"

"That's the place."

"Reginald isn't ready for that! He's just begun learning how to kill demons; he can't handle them when they're in their natural habitat!" Shiva began ranting, pacing the kitchen floors. Griff looked at Tai and mouth 'Reginald?'. Tai mouthed back 'don't ask' and started bouncing Chelsea on his hip to keep her from fussing again.

"Calm down Shiva," he said to the space hanyou, wrapping his free arm around her waist as she passed him to keep her from wearing a hole through the floor, "There is the prophesy to consider, remember? You've seen the outcome, or some form of it at least: I'm sure it's not Harry's time to die yet."

"I fuckn' hate prophesies," Shiva grumbled moodily, plopping down in a chair, "so... what's for dinner?"

"I've set some steak out for us to grill and Griff was about to make some broccoli," Angela said.

"I was?"

Apparently this was news to Griff.

"OW!" Tai cried out, grabbing the attention of the others.

"What's wrong?" Angela asked concernedly. Tai was examining his hand.

"She bit me," he mumbled. He looked back at Chelsea who was now chewing steadily on her favorite stuffed turtle.

"Open your mouth for daddy," he said in a sweet voice no one else would have ever heard him use. He stuck his finger in her mouth and lightly rubbed it against her gums. Sure enough, he felt two sets of white points. Chelsea gurgled happily and abandoned her turtle in favor of his finger.

"Awww," Shiva cooed, leaning in to get a better look, "She's getting her fangs already."

"Great," Tai mumbled. He had to tug his finger from her strengthening grip. Her face scrunched up at the loss and she looked ready to let loose a wail.

"Damn it," Tai swore silently, "Angela, can you fetch me the bottle I prepared for her? It should be in the microwave."

Angela got the bottle and handed it over saying, "If she's getting her teeth this early then maybe you should start her on solid foods."

"You think so?" Tai said doubtfully. Chelsea was just so young; then again, he didn't know much about babies.

"I agree with Angela," Griff stated, "She's not all human remember? She'll probably develop faster than human babies."

"I guess you're right..."

"Ya think she'll want some of this steak?" Shiva asked eccentrically, holding up a raw slab of meat to the baby's face with a fork.

"Shiva, get that away from her!" Tai barked sharply. But it was too late. With a speed unnatural for an infant that young, Chelsea latched onto the stake with her budding fangs, tasting the juice of the animal. Two seconds later dark blue, jagged lines appeared under her eyes, which had darkened from chocolate to black. Shiva jumped back quickly.

"Well that would be her demon heritage..." she trailed.

"Ahh! She's got the taste of blood in her mouth! She'll kill us all!" Griff cried hysterically. Shiva joined him in his screaming as Angela stood by and stared at the whole scene with wide eyes.

"Shut up!" Tai snapped at them, yanking the raw steak away from his daughter and tossing it in the sink. He quickly replaced it with the bottle to keep Chelsea from throwing a fit. The child greedily sucked up the milk; the blue streaks gradually disappeared and her eyes lightened to their original russet.

"_Shiva_," Tai growled, "Never, _ever_, do that again."

"I'm sorry," Shiva moaned, "I swear, I didn't know she would attack it like that."

"None of us did," Angela assured her soothingly, "believe me; it's easy to forget that she's not a normal baby. She's usually so well behaved."

Tai sighed, "I'm gunna clean her up and put her to bed. Hey, Griff?"

"Yeah?" the cyborg said while he picked up the assaulted steak with two fingers and tossed it in the trash.

"Can you do me a favor and check to northern regions of the Northbridge peninsula? ACE told me there was a disturbance of some sort."

"Yeah sure," he answered casually.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o 

The sun had set a couple hours ago, but there were still a group of kid out in the Odiaba Park, despite it being a school night. Kari sat patiently on a bench, waiting for the other digidestined reactions. What she got was a round of laughter.

"No really Kari, why did Tai come back?" Davis asked as his laughter subsided, "And for that matter, why did he leave so soon?"

"I'm serious. He has a daughter. My parents saw her themselves."

Matt looked grimly at the younger girl, "This isn't good. How is this even possible? There are only so many people he could have had a kid with. It must have been Shiva, since Angela and Griff are together."

Kari shook her head.

"He said—he told my parents—it was Moira."

"WHAT?" many of the gathered teenagers exclaimed simultaneously.

"N-no," Sora gasped, not wanting to believe it; all hopes of getting with Tai flying out the window, "It isn't true! Tai wouldn't do that!"

"How could he?" Yolie cried in disbelief, "He was supposed to be protecting the digital world, not sleeping with the enemy!"

"Now, now," Joe said logically, "Let's not get too mad at Tai. What's done is done. And he is taking responsibility for the child."

"Yeah," Cody piped up, "And he defeated Moira. Or the guardians did anyway. You did say she was dead, right Kari? So that means the Digital World is safe for the time being."

Kari nodded. She still seemed much shaken by the ordeal. T.K. rested a consoling arm around her shoulders.

"I think Tai could use all the support we can give him. I say we visit him sometime."

"I would like to see my niece," Kari sniffled with a small smile.

"Well I can't go," Matt declared, "I have a gig in a couple days and have to practice."

"I have a tennis match."

"I have an exam on patellas."

"I have a Kendo session."

"Alright, alright. We'll go when we all have a free day. Agreed?"

"Agreed," the group chorused back.

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o 

Griff stepped away from the T.V. he recently exited and looked around. Northbridge peninsula was a lush area of the digital world, filled with forests and gardens; his kind of place. Everything seemed relatively normal; he wasn't getting any bad vibes or anything. Then again, looks could be deceiving. He walked around a bit, examining anything that might seem out of the ordinary. While he didn't have Tai's uncanny sixth sense when it came to the well being of the data of the Digital World, he was still very connected with the forest. As he made his way north he began to feel the darkened aura around the trees.

Out of nowhere a chill spread through the air, tickling the grass with frost. For one, surreal moment Griff thought Moira was back from the dead, but all thoughts of that were abandoned as a strange howling carried over to him with the wind. Griff took a staggering step backwards as an unnatural fear swept through his body, clutching his heart in an unmerciful grip. He looked down to see his hands involuntarily shaking. Something was very wrong. It was like the happiness was sucked out of him, leaving a cold, hollow feeling in his chest. The pounding of his heart in his ears was drowned out by a voice—an old tribesman's voice chanting in a harsh, evil manner. It kept repeating over and over again, gaining volume as the air around him grew even colder. The last thing her heard, just over the incessant chanting, was a deep rattling breath, before his world went dark.

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o 

Now the question is...do we like Griff enough to let him survive this? OR should Iadd some drama?

I know I should be smacked for taking so long with the update. It's because I spend so much time with my other fics, I forget about this one. Sorry!

Thanks for the reviews guys!


	20. Love: The Fading Barrier

**Chapter 20**

Griff groaned and opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was that he was in a bed; a nice fluffy one. The room he was in was small and bright, morning sunlight streaming through the large window on the sandstone wall.

"Hello!"

"Ahhrgh!" Griff fell out of one side of the bed as a bubbly face popped in front of his own.

He heard the bed squeak as a Native American boy draped across it, looking down at his position on the floor. The boy seemed to be in his mid-teens and had shoulder length black hair and a tan headband across his forehead.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly, "Lou's the name."

He held out a hand which Griff took and pulled the guardian to his feet.

"Griff," he said, still looking around suspiciously. In was then he noticed someone else in the room, standing quietly in the corner. At a first glance he thought he was some type of digimon. The boy had short, messy silver hair and cerulean slitted eyes along with pointed ears. He was tall, looking like he was in his late teens.

"Josh," he introduced himself in a cool voice.

"Hi," Griff said uneasily, "Um...can either of you tell me what happened? The last thing I remember was feeling really cold..."

"Yeah man! Your soul was totally, like, halfway out of your body," Lou laughed, enthused. The taller one scowled and smacked him upside the head.

Griff was fully awake now, "Huh? My soul?"

"Yup. Those were dementors. They eat your soul! How sweet is that?" Lou continued. He seemed to find the whole situation absolutely fantastic. Josh frowned.

"They do not _eat_ your soul. They just suck it out of you through your mouth. It's called the dementor's kiss."

"Whatever man. You're the wizard, not me," Lou said, waving him off.

"Wizard?" Griff asked. He shook his head trying to focus, "Hold on, where am I? How did you two get in the digiworld? Um...I am in the digiworld...right?"

"You are," Josh assured him, "We were just visiting his Tortomon when I detected the dementors. When we found you, you were seconds from having your soul taken. So I sent out a patronous and they retreated. You've been unconscious since."

"I see," he said, not understanding what a patronous was. "You have a Tortomon?" he asked Lou. The boy nodded, "Then you must be a digidestined."

"Yup, from New York."

"So you're a digidestined too?" he asked Josh.

Josh shook his head negative.

"No. I'm just friends with this loser. Though it's a good thing he decided to drag me along."

"Oh," Griff said, paying more attention his familiar demonic features, "well if you don't mind me asking...are you related to Inuyasha at all? You kind of look like him."

At this, Josh looked surprised.

"Inuyasha? How do you know him?"

"Um, I know him through Tai."

"Who?"

Griff ignored him, "How do _you_ know him?"

"I'm his son."

Griff nearly fell off his bed again. "How many freaking kids does that guy have?"

Josh gave a small grin at that.

"I have two sisters an older brother and twenty four half siblings."

Griff whistled, "I guess he's gotten around."

"Yeah!" Lou said, ever the enthusiastic, "Mr. B is like...so my hero!"

Josh gave him a dry look.

"You want twenty eight kids?"

"No..."

"Then shut up."

As they bickered Griff stood from the bed to walk around. His back moaned in protest and his muscled screamed in pain.

"Man, I am sore. How long have I been out?"

"Three months," Lou said happily, turning away from Josh.

"Three...WHAT?"

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o

"Angela! Come get some damn food!"

The eighteen year old blond ignored her best friend as she stared at the picture in her hands. It was of her, younger and jovial, laughing in the arms of a sturdy young man, dark skinned and part metal. A small tear left her eye as she thought a few months back when Griff didn't return from a small mission Tai sent him on. She recalled as afterwards they had split up in search for him, and that's when they realized something was deathly wrong. There were certain areas of the digital world that seemed chilled over and devoid of life. Tai himself had gone nearly insane trying to figure out the problem, soon discovering that there were patches in the ozone of the Digital World that were wearing away. Unfortunately, he couldn't seem to get near these parts without provoking the chilling apparitions into attacking him. It didn't take them long to realize what happened to Griff. If Tai wasn't stressed enough after that, matters only became worse when the Tokyo digidestined decided to visit.

_:Flashback:_

"Damn it," Tai swore, staring at the map Ace had pulled up for him on her screen. There were many dark patches spread across the plains of the Digital World, indicating where the tears in the barrier were.

"What are we going to do about this?" Shiva asked softly. Angela was indisposed at the moment, having cried herself to sleep after the recent conclusion of what happened to her beloved became evident.

"There's nothing we can do," he said frustrated, running a hand through his hair, "Just patch up whatever we can without getting killed by those...things. If we just knew what they were, then maybe we could find some way to destroy them..."

A loud cry from down the hall indicated that Chelsea had awakened from her nap. Tai left the room quickly to his room where no doubt he would be met with the stink of a dirty diaper.

Seconds after he left a bright blue light filtered through Ace's screen.

"What the—" Shiva cut herself off as the light cleared and a pile of Digidestined was in front of her.

"Um...hi there?" she said awkwardly as the group before her quickly detangled themselves and scrambled to their feet.

"Hey Shiva," Kari started, "We came by to see Tai's daughter."

"Oh..." Shiva said blankly, "Well now isn't the best of times...we're having a bit of a crisis..."

"Please, we just want to see him. This is the only time our schedules allow us to visit him as a group." Kari pleaded. The other digidestined nodded in agreement. Shiva sighed, caving into their hopeless looks.

"Fine, go wait in the living room and I'll get him."

The digidestined, remembering where the room was, complied.

"I wonder what the crisis is." Izzy said, breaking the silence. Yolie rolled her eyes at him.

"Figures you'd be the one to ask that."

"No, I'm with Izzy," Matt said, "I mean, it probably pertains to the Digiworld, and if that's the case, don't you think the digidestined should be informed?"

"Well maybe it's just between the guardians?" T.K. suggested.

"I'm sure Tai has everything under control, whatever it is," Sora said in his defense. She was very nervous about whether Tai really had a daughter. It was a scary thought; they were only just turning eighteen. It made her really think about her decision years ago. If she had chosen Tai, he would have never gone to Shiva...and then what? Would he still have become a guardian? Maybe. But he probably wouldn't have slept around so much if he were devoted to her...

"Hey guys."

Everyone's attention was directed to Tai, who had stepped into the room, Shiva standing quietly behind him. But what they really were looking at was the young child in his arms, staring at them with wide, brown eyes. Tai shifted nervously under their gazes. Kari stood up from her seat and walked over to him.

"Is this my niece?" she asked quietly. At Tai's slow nod she grinned, "She is just adorable! Can I hold her?"

Tai smiled at her as well, "Sure."

He placed Chelsea in her arms, who put up a bit of a fight until she recognized Kari's scent as family. Tai smiled as Kari tickled the baby in her round tummy.

"Mind her wings," he said. Kari frowned and felt around her back. Sure enough there were bones and feathers beneath her little sweater.

"Aww," Mimi cooed seeing Kari happily cuddling the baby and rushed over, "Tai she looks just like you!"

One by one, the rest of the digidestined came over for a better look. All of the girls wanted to hold her and kept patting her soft head, while the guys were generally a little weary of her.

"Wow Man..." Matt trailed. He honestly didn't know how Tai handled the responsibility.

"It's alright; nothing I can't handle," Tai said, answering his unvoiced thoughts.

"Well Tai, I hope you've learned the repercussions of unsafe sex," Joe began, pushing his glasses up on his nose.

"Shut it," Shiva commanded before the boy could get rolling. Tai shot her a thankful look while Joe just looked offended.

Kari snuck away from the group and pulled Tai with her.

"Mum's really upset about loosing her temper with you," she said quietly to Tai as he watched Sora bounce his giggling daughter on her hip, "She really wants to be a part of Chelsea's life and she's starting to like the idea of being a grandmother."

Hearing this actually made Tai feel slightly better, "I would love to stop by sometime..." he trailed off and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Kari asked.

"Kari, it may be a while until I can come home...in fact...I really don't feel comfortable with you all being here—"

"Hey Tai," Davis said suddenly as if he had somehow heard the private conversation, "What's this I hear about a crisis?"

The other digidestined looked up at this, wanting to know as well.

"Don't worry about it," Tai said automatically. Shiva shot him a look as if he were crazy.

"Tai—" she began.

"Its fine," he stressed.

"Why don't you feel comfortable with us being here?" Kari asked loudly, not letting the subject drop. Tai looked from her determined face to the curious and wary faces of his former team.

"It's the barrier," he sighed after a moment, "There's been...problems...holes more like. We'd fix them but there's some kind of apparitions...I don't know what it is exactly, but they surround these holes and stop us from making any repairs."

"And you didn't think of telling us?" Izzy said, outraged.

"There's nothing you can do!" Tai shot back, "Trust me, if there was, I'd ask for help."

"Nothing I can do! Do you know who you're talking to man?" Mimi put a hand on Izzy's arm to calm him down.

"He didn't mean anything by it," she said quietly.

"What do you mean there's nothing we can do?" Davis asked, "We're the digidestined aren't we? It's our job to protect the Digiworld."

There were murmurs of agreement from the digidestined.

"No, it's too dangerous," Tai said, "The barriers are weak and there's nothing you can do to help until we figure out how to beat these thing."

"If you can't do it then just have us and the digimon do it!" Matt argued. Shiva shook her head.

"These aren't digimon that we're fighting so using digimon to fight wouldn't do much. They would be just as vulnerable."

"That's no reason to leave us out—"

"Look," Tai snapped, interrupting Matt, "These things are dangerous! We've already lost..." he trailed, realizing he said too much.

"Already lost who?" TK pushed.

"Griff."

Everyone turned to see Angela standing in the doorway; hair in disarray and blotchy red eyes.

"Griff?" Sora said in a hushed whisper, "he's..."

"He's been missing for over a month now..." She broke off, tearing up. Mimi sprang to her feet and wrapped her arms around the girl.

"Why didn't you tell us things got this bad?" Kari asked her brother, aghast.

"I don't want you guys caught up in this. There's nothing you can do to help at the moment and I can't risk anything happening to any of you."

The room was silent after his explanation.

"Fine," Izzy said finally, probably the most burned at not being able to help, "But if you don't mind, I'll be doing my own research on this."

"Alright, just be careful."

_:End Flashback:_

Of course, much to Izzy's anger and frustration, he couldn't find anything useful on the dilemma.

Sighing, Angela put the picture back on the stand next to the bed she sat on; a bed that hadn't been slept on in months. She stood and trudged towards the kitchen where she would only pick at her food.

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o

"She's still upset about Griff," Shiva said after calling for the blonde. She walked over to where Tai was sitting on the kitchen counter, a plate of spaghetti in his hands. He swallowed his mouthful.

"She must hate me," he muttered.

"Hey," she said sharply, hating it when he fell into his guilt mode, "You didn't know any better."

"But I knew something was wrong!" Tai hissed "How could I have missed it?"

"It was a slow decay," Shiva reassured him, "Even Azulonmon didn't notice. Hell—you realized before him!"

"I still should have gone instead of _him_."

"Why? So Chelsea wouldn't have a mother _or_ a father?"

Tai stopped and put his spaghetti on the counter, not feeling very hungry anymore.

"She's right Tai," Angela said walking in. Tai and Shiva both looked at her guilty. "No, its fine. I agree with Shiva. You're probably needed alive the most."

She gave them a sad little smile and helped herself to some spaghetti. They finished their dinner in silence. As expected, Angela had only taken a few bites before trudging back up the stairs once more.

"This has got to stop," Shiva muttered after she left. "We need her help damn it."

"I know," Tai sighed, walking into the living room collapsing on the couch, "We'll talk to her later."

He smiled at Chelsea who was in her playpen, banging the floor with some unknown toy. As if feeling his eyes on her she looked up at him and smiled, pulling herself to her feet and holding on to the edge of her confinement.

"Ada!" she exclaimed, bouncing on the balls of her feet and pointing to Tai, "A dadaaaa."

"Yup, dada," Tai laughed, delighted in hearing her call him that. She loved talking now, with the few words she knew, "And who's this?"

He pointed to Shiva.

"Mmmama!"

Tai and Shiva both sweat-dropped.

"No, no, hunny. I'm Shiva. Shiiivvaaaa," Shiva said slowly. The girl only giggled.

"Well...um...she probably would think that you're...um..." Tai stuttered a little embarrassed.

"Her mother?" Shiva helped. "I don't mind; I mean I would love to be her mother..." her face went red as she tried to continue, "T-that is if you don't mind."

Tai was shocked, but happy just the same.

"You would? You wouldn't mind?"

"Not at all," Shiva smiled warmly, "I love her, just as much as I l-love..."

Tai leaned in closer to her, "As much as you love who?" he whispered.

"As much as I love..." Their noses were inches apart now; each could feel the warm breath of the other on their faces. Their heads tilted slightly as their lips drew nearer; Chelsea watched all this with glittering, curious russet eyes. Suddenly Shiva's nose gave a small twitch and she pulled back. Tai pulled back as well, wondering why she would ruin the moment.

"What's wrong?" he asked as she lifted her head to the air and sniffed heavily a few times.

"I smell"...Shiva said sniffing the air lightly once more, "I smell...metal?"

"Metal—?"

"I smell GRIFF!" She screamed suddenly, running out the door. Tai didn't miss a beat running right after her.

"ANGELA—WE THINK YOUR BOY-TOY'S BAAACK!" He hollered as he ran. He vaguely hard the sound of thudding steps down the stairs as he tore through the door. Just ahead he could see the familiar cyborg get hit in a massive hug as Shiva nearly tackled him. He was not one to be left out of a group hug.

"Tai, don't you dare—" Griff called out as he struggled under the weight of Shiva clinging to his side and kissing him soundly on the cheek. Tai of course didn't listen and jumped on him as well. The only thing keeping Griff standing was his unnatural strength.

"Where the hell have you been you tard?" Tai yelled at his friend. Griff was about to answer when he was cut off by a near scream.

"GRIFF!"

Angela had exited the coliseum and ran towards the group faster than anyone had seen the nymph move.

"Girlfriend," Shiva muttered to Tai, "retreat."

Tai and Shiva sprang off of Griff just in time as Angela leapt upon him, kissing him feverishly.

"Come on," Tai muttered, dragging Shiva away from the reuniting couple, "Let's leave them alone. I think I need to put Chelsea down for a nap anyway."

"Aw, come on," Shiva pouted, "I want to see them get it on right here in the dirt."

"You're freaking sick, you know that?" Tai asked, staring at her. He grabbed her arm and continued to drag her into the coliseum, ignoring her protests.

It took a while before they managed to get Chelsea to lie down; all the excitement in the air from Griff's return had riled her up. Seeing that she was finally settled, Shiva turned to leave.

"Wait," Tai murmured grabbing her arm, "About earlier..."

"Look, I'm sorry about that—" Shiva began before she was silenced as Tai pressed his lips against hers in a chaste kiss.

"I love you too," he whispered, gingerly tucking a lot of hair behind her ear. Shiva gasped and her heart thudded. She had waited to hear those words for nearly three years. She granted him a brilliant smile before pulling him into another kiss...and another and another until they were sure Chelsea was fast asleep.

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o

Griff had told them where he had been for the last few months (on a remote island a long ways away from where he was) and who had saved him. They were now situated in the meeting room; Angela snuggled into Griff's lap and Shiva and Tai sitting unusually close.

"How many freaking kids does that guy have?" Tai asked.

"That's what I said."

"Oh man...I'd have his kids!" Shiva gushed, ignoring Tai's annoyed look. Angela giggled and nodded.

"And did you know Inuyasha is really a wizard? And most of his kids are too?" Griff asked amazing.

"Really?" This was news to the entire group.

"What about what attacked you? Did you learn anything about it?" Tai asked.

"That's where the wizard part comes into play. You guys won't believe what's eating the barriers away," Griff said.

"...what?" Shiva finally asked.

"Dementors!"

There was silence as everyone stared at him blankly including Ace (if a computer could stare) so Griff continued.

"I don't know what exactly they are, Josh wasn't too clear on that, but only a wizard can get rid of them. They essentially suck your soul out of your body through your mouth after making you relive your worst memories."

"We need to get rid of the rest of these dementors before they destroy the entire barrier," Tai concluded.

"Josh is going around trying his best to drive them back out the way they came, but it's not enough; apparently they patronous things need a lot of power."

"Well I know just the man for the job!" Shiva cried, running out of the room for the phone in the kitchen; it was the only one that could make calls that landed out of the digital world.

"She's not calling...?"

"Yup."

"Snap."

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o

Shiva practically tore the phone from its cradle and punched in the numbers that she hadn't dialed in what seemed like forever.

"Hello?"

Shiva almost didn't recognize the voice, for it sounded slightly older than she remembered.

"Harry darling?"

By his intake of break she could tell he recognized her by her voice.

"What?" he asked with apprehension.

"How would you like to come to the digital world with me?"

There was a long pause before: "You want to suck me into a computer?"

"Yup."

"Yeah. Sure. Whatever. I've got nothing better to do."

Shiva clapped her hands, "Wonderful! I'll stop by to pick you up."

"Erm...do you even know where I am?"

Shiva's face fell.

"No actually. Where are you?"

"I live with Inuyasha now, in Salem, Massachusetts."

"Really? When the hell did this happen?"

"Er...when I died I suppose."

"WHAT? What the hell do you mean, 'you died?'" Shiva all but screamed into the phone. There was a long, exasperated sigh.

"I didn't die, I just faked a death."

"Oh...well that's ok then," she decided.

"I'm glad you approve," came the dry reply.

"Fine, I'm coming over right now!"

"Alright, bye."

"Tata!"

The second Shiva hung up, Tai came running into the kitchen, wide eyed and breathing hard.

"You!" he cried, looking betrayed, "You left me there with the rabbits!"

"The rabbits..." Shiva muttered, "They're not..."

"Yes! They are! On the table!"

Shiva laughed with glee, running towards the room.

"Oi! Where are you going?"

"I—uh—I need to use Ace!"

"You do not you sick pervert!" he cried running after her.

"Oh, but I really do! I'm bringing more wizards!"

From down the hall Tai saw her barge into the meeting room and shriek with laughter. He shook his head sadly. Of all the girls he had to fall for...

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o

Oh My God! I updated! (Gasp) I know, my interest in this story has decayed dramatically since I started the demon hunter trilogy. Whoops.

As for Lou—He was only shown briefly so I didn't have much to base his personality on, so I decided to make him super duper hyper (It's how my twisted mind works, ok?). And he referred to Inuyasha as 'Mr. B' because he was using the last name Black then.

Josh is of course much older than he looks; I'm guessing he could be born in the early twentieth century or late nineteenth.


	21. Whole Again: Wizards to the rescue

**Chapter 21**

Harry Potter, now dead to the wizarding world and demon hunter extraordinaire, stared at the glowing blue screen in front of him.

"Um...well...Er..."

"Well go on!" The female brunette next to him urged, "Just walk into the light."

The younger teen ran his hand through his wild, black hair. If he recalled correctly, he was much more confident the first time he walked into a lit fireplace to floo. And we all know how _that_ ended up.

"Yes, please, by all means, _walk into the light_."

Harry turned on the very amused hanyou behind him.

"You shut the hell up. Go downstairs."

Inuyasha continued to laugh at his apprentice and stood his ground. Shiva scowled at Harry and rushed over to Inuyasha's side; her hands immediately flying to his ears.

"Don't yell at him. He's too cute!" she scolded as she traced rhythmic patters over the fuzzy tips with her fingers. Inuyasha grinned lazily at him, knowing very well how smitten Shiva was with him.

"Yeah, I'm too cute."

Harry made a disgusted face at the pair, deciding he'd rather get lost somewhere in the internet than watch his former screw-buddy coo over his mentor, and took an uncaring stepped into the computer. Suddenly he was jerked forward—flying through a white tunnel, sequences of ones and zeros surrounding him. He could compare it to flying without a broom. Just as he was starting to enjoy the sensation it ended, leaving him in an uncomfortable position on a linoleum floor.

"She didn't warn you about the landing did she?"

Harry looked up from the ground to see Tai chilling in one of the comfortable looking chairs surrounding a long, rectangular table in the middle of the room. Looking around he noticed that the entire wall behind him consisted of what appeared to be a giant computer screen—one that he could only assume he just came out of. He lifted himself with a tender groan.

"Nope."

Once on his feet, he looked Tai over again. And then suddenly became aware of the tension the two might hold between them due to a certain promiscuous half demon.

"Where's Shiva?" Tai asked, standing from his chair. Harry shrugged.

"Still with Inuyasha I suppose."

"Hmm..." Tai said and appeared to be thinking on something, "And how goes the situation in the wizarding world? Sorry we haven't been in touch lately, we've been a bit...occupied."

Harry smiled and nodded, "I know, Shiva filled me in earlier. The wizarding world is enjoying its brief, peaceful respite for the time being. They seemed to have gotten over my "death" quick enough anyhow and have a new minister of magic."

Tai grinned optimistically.

"Well good! And after we take care of this little barrier problem we can all have a little vaca!"

The good humor was shattered by a wailing cry in the background. Tai's face fell comically.

"Or not..."

It was then Harry remembered the baby.

"Oh yeah, um..."

"Chelsea."

"Chelsea, right. Shiva mentioned something about that before."

"Alright, come on."

Tai motioned for Harry to follow him as he made his way to his daughter's room. He flicked on the light switch of the darkened nursery and walked over to the crib.

"Hi there, beautiful!" he cooed, reaching into the crib and lifting the hissy infant from her bed. He bounced her and shushed her and soon the child was quieted.

Harry could only stare. Tai wasn't even eighteen yet. He just went from a diplomat of another world to a loving, teen father in seconds.

"This is Harry. Can you say Harry?"

Harry watched bemused as a bubble of spit dribbled forth from her mouth as she attempted to say his name.

"How old is she?" Harry asked, making small talk. He held out a finger to her, which she immediately grasped in one pudgy hand.

"Almost six months." Tai replied, pulling his daughter away from him and holding her towards Harry. Harry almost took a step backwards out of what he would call shock—though others may go as far as to call it fear.

"What? Oh no. I couldn't—" he tried to reason, wanting to ward off the offered child.

But Chelsea had made up her mind right then and stretched her arms to embrace the young wizard.

"Go on. She doesn't bite—much." As if to worsen things, Chelsea gave an open-mouthed smile at the statement, revealing her two tiny fangs.

"Er—ok..." Harry said as he accepted the child somewhat awkwardly. For god's sake, he dealt with full grown demons on a daily basis. He had nothing to fear from a baby...unless it pissed on him.

"See? That's not so bad now is it?" Tai asked, grinning benignly. Chelsea stuck a thumb in her mouth and looked up at Harry with large, brown eyes.

"No..." Harry trailed off. He had never held a baby before in his life, and, though he wouldn't admit it to anyone, he rather liked the added weight in his arms. The crinkled bumps beneath the back of her shirt did not escape him.

"Aww...so he _can_ interact with children!" Shiva said from the doorway in a sickly sweet voice. Harry scoffed and immediately handed Chelsea off to Shiva.

"Mama!" the child exclaimed upon setting her eyes on the half-demon.

Harry stared at Shiva, who rolled her eyes and mouthed 'don't ask'.

"What took you so long?" Tai asked. Shiva shrugged, shifting Chelsea to her other hip.

"Inuyasha just wanted to ask me what was going on around here. You know...how Chelsea was doing, how you are in bed...the usual things he asks. Like I'd pass up an opportunity to chat with that hunk! Oh Tai, she's hungry."

Chelsea had latched onto her shoulder with her fangs and was soaking the cloth of her shirt with saliva. Harry grimaced.

"Alright. You feed her; I'll take Harry around to the gates and explain the situation more thoroughly." Shiva nodded and Tai motioned for the wizard to follow him.

"So what has Shiva told you so far about our situation?" Tai asked as they exited the coliseum.

"Next to nothing, really. She said you were having problems with the barrier separating this world from the human one."

"Well, yeah, in a nut shell. I believe it has something to do with the war in with wizarding world. You said the dementors were running rampant...?"

"They were, but the ministry has been cleaning that up last I heard."

"Right. From what I've gathered, while your war was going on, and the dementors were all over the place, they began eating through the barrier that separates the real world from this one. There are gaping holes all thorough the barrier—which could be fixed easy enough if those damn things weren't always trying to kill me."

"How do you know if they are dementors?"

"Josh told us. Well—he told Griff, who told us. That's who were going to see right now. He'll help us since he's a wizard too."

"Josh...?" Harry prompted, thinking maybe he might have heard of him. Tai looked at him a bit strangely.

"He's one of Inuyasha's kids."

"What!" Harry said, stopping. Was there anywhere that didn't have one of his spawns running around?

"Yeah," Tai replied easily stopping as well, "Don't you know him? You live with Inuyasha now don't you?"

"You think I've met all his kids?" Harry exclaimed exasperated, "I've only met...like...eight of them."

Tai blinked. He resumed his walking and Harry followed.

"What will happen if these holes remain?"

"Remember El Niño?"

"Yeah...?"

"Worse than that."

"Oh."

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

"He was here and you didn't introduce him to me?" Angela cried out to the girl sitting opposite the table of her, currently feeding Chelsea as she ate lunch.

"He did come here to work you know..." Shiva reprimanded. Angela pouted.

"But I never got to meet him before. All I have are your crazy stories."

"And where were you when he was here?" Shiva asked knowingly. Angela had the decency to blush briefly and then resumed her pouting.

"But its' still not fair..."

"You got to defile Ace's room...again! Be satisfied with that."

Angela gave a silly giggle as she reminisced her latest moments with her boyfriend.

"Where is the boy anyway?" Shiva asked. She took a bite of her sandwich as she watched Chelsea gnaw on an apple slice.

Angela sighed airily.

"Resting."

Silence reigned in the kitchen. Shiva's sandwich was finished and she began to clear the mess off of Chelsea's eating area.

"So what's going on with the famous triangle?" Angela asked seemingly out of nowhere. Shiva nearly dropped the plates in here hands. Instead she placed them in the sink and turned to give Angela a slow, incredulous look.

"What?"

"Oh you know what I mean? There's you and Harry and your little fling thing. And I may have been otherwise engaged for the last few hours but there's something going on something going on with you and Tai."

Shiva's face reddened, "I—uh...don't know what you're talking about..."

She grabbed a wet washcloth and began to wipe the sticky apple juice from Chelsea's face.

"Awww, come oooon," Angela whined, stretching her upper body across the table, "I'll find out eventually!"

Shiva sighed and straitened, looking at her friend who was half sprawled all over the dining area in her pathetic state, "Harry and I were friends with benefits. Nothing more. And it's ended so it doesn't matter."

She seemed to be talking to herself at this point. Her eyes were fixed on a spot on the floor, squinted as she mulled something over in her head.

"And you won't be going back to the benefits...?" Angela prompted.

"No." Shiva answered softly. She walked back to the sink to rinse out the washcloth. Angela seemed to be getting more excited.

"Because you and Tai are finally together...?"

Shiva swallowed and knew what was coming.

"...yes."

"AHHHHHHH!"

Shiva cringed and jerked back from the shrill cry of the blonde. Angela had sprung from the table and enveloped the other girl in the tight hug.

"I knew it! I knew it! It was only a matter of time! God! You guys took forever!"

She continued to bounce while latched onto the brunette. Chelsea watched all of this from her high chair with wide, bewildered eyes.

"Angela! You're such a girl! Calm down!"

"I can't! I can't!" Angela changed, squeezing her friend tighter. Shiva couldn't stop the smile that slowly spread across her face. One born from both the love of her best friend, and the love of the man she finally won over. Angela finally calmed down enough to release the girl.

"So does this mean you're boyfriend and girlfriend? For real?"

"Yep."

"And are you going to be Chelsea's mother?"

Shiva looked over at the baby, seemed giddy with all the excitement in the air.

"He asked me to be."

"That is so sweet!" Angela said, truly happy for her friend. "I can't wait for my little Griff!"

Shiva's head snapped back to her and sharply asked, "What?"

"Years later, hun, years."

Shiva let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank god. Because one baby is enough for the four of us."

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

"Ah. So you're dad's prodigy boy." Joshua Black stated as he circled the younger man. Harry was too busy staring at Inuyasha's son to care. The short silver hair hung chaotically in his face, nearly covering the piercing cerulean eyes that—along with the pointed ears—all but screamed demon. His attitude was not much like Inuyasha's, he noted in the short time he was in Josh's presence. The man seemed more standoffish than his father, but not in a cold way like Sesshomaru.

"He's talked about me?" Harry inquired. Tai had led him to a meadow not far from the coliseum, where he met the other wizard.

"Are you kidding? I think he loves you more than his own children." It was said lightly as not to be taken as a bitter statement. But Harry shifted uncomfortably nonetheless, a red tinge on his cheeks. Tai smiled at his bashfulness and decided to intervene.

"Griff said you had another boy with you...Lou?"

"Yeah, he left." Josh waved him off airily. "There isn't much for him to do here."

"Well in that case I guess we should get started!" Tai said cheerfully. "This may take all day...or more than one day, depending on how strong your patronus are."

"So what's the plan?" Harry asked.

"I know all the places where there are tears in the barrier," he didn't bother to mention how he knew, for it was an instinctual thing that he couldn't even begin to put into words, "Fortunately the problem lies generally in the area equivalent to England, most likely since that was where the war was. I'll transport each of you to an area where there are rips. I'll leave the dementor-ridding to you guys since I'm out of my league there."

"Sounds good."

"Okay, each of you hold onto one of my arms tight, and no matter what you feel_ do not let go_. I don't need random matter floating around the internet."

"Did you just call us random matter?" Josh asked vacantly as he gripped one of his arms, Harry doing the same with the other.

Tai ignored him and said, "Here we go!"

And suddenly the ground beneath their feet was gone and Harry's stomach leapt high into his throat. He tightened his hold on Tai's arm as they free fell into a blue abyss. After what seemed like a minute but was in fact no more than a second, they slowed, hanging in mid air before zipping forwards. The change of direction nearly tore Harry off of his travel guide. He looked over Tai's head to see Josh looking as dazed as he felt. A shining white light ahead of them caught his attention. They were speeding towards it even faster, allowing it to consume them. Harry could already feel the hollow feeling that came with the presence of a dementor leaking through. And then there was ground beneath his feet again. But this time it wasn't green and alive. It was soil. Harry looked around him to see miles upon miles of dead trees and blackened earth. The foreboding chill that dominated the atmosphere reminded him all too much of a forced opening to hell. It made sense, seeing as that was where dementors were spawned from.

Tai shivered a bit a rubbed his arms.

"Do either of you see them?" he asked.

Neither of the wizards needed to look far to find a dementor. There were dozens of them on the horizon—gliding along the dying grounds, wailing their tales of sorrow.

"Yeah," Josh said softly, "They're everywhere. It won't be long before they detect us and go in for the kill."

Harry grunted in agreement.

Tai let out a frosty breath of air, hating the bleakness that was steadily consuming him.

"One of you will take care of this area, and I'll take the other to the next one. Then I'll come back, wait till you're finished and patch the holes. It will keep going like that until everything's wrapped up, clear?"

The other two nodded.

"I'll take this area." Josh volunteered, his wand already pressed to his palm.

"Excellent." Tai said, attempting to be cheerful and failing miserably. He held out his arm to Harry as he would if he were escorting a date, "Shall we?"

The bespectacled boy rolled his eyes and took the offered appendage.

"_Expecto Patronum!"_

Harry saw a large, sleek silver puma burst from Josh's wand before he felt the ground disappear once more.

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o

Tai stared at the black, negated space in the sky. It was almost bruise like. They were the bruises of the digital world.

"There are no dementors up there..." Harry said over his shoulder as he directed his stag patronus towards another cluster of apparitions. The air around them was already starting to warm.

"No..." Tai said evenly, "You can't see them can you?"

"What?" Harry asked, turning to fully face him.

"The breaks in the code...the holes in the barrier."

"Oh." Harry replied. "No. Is that what you're looking at?"

"I can feel them," Tai said. He lifted a hand to his chest and absently rubbed it. "It hurts."

Harry stared at Tai, who looked so sad at the moment. He couldn't understand the connection he held with the digital world, and he wouldn't try to.

"You'll be able to fix it soon," Harry said readily. It was much easier to be optimistic with the significant dent in the dementor army. Tai blinked and looked away from the tear.

"Oh yeah. I should go back to Josh and move him onto another area."

"Don't worry. I'll take care of this," Harry grinned. Tai smiled appreciatively and disappeared in the short flash of blue light. Seconds later he was besides Josh, who jumped at his sudden appearance. It was so much fast traveling through the system when he was by himself.

"Hey!" Tai grinned. The air was warm and the clouds had completely dissipated, allowing the sun to shine down of them. "We all good to go?"

Josh nodded. "Yep. They're all gone."

Tai made short work of taking Josh to a new location before returning to the recently cleared one. While the atmosphere was a whole lot more welcoming, he was still saddened by the death the frost had done to the environment. He looked around to see three distinct holes in the barrier. He walked to the closest, feeling cold dead air hit his face as black abyss stared back at him. He raised both his hands and placed them lightly on the edges of the tear. Concentrating, he built the codes up around the faded areas, stitching them back together. Though his eyes were closed in meditation, he could feel the rift getting smaller and smaller until closing completely. The code was whole once more.

He could feel a small weight was lifted from his chest. He smiled.

0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o

It was not until late into the night that Tai and Harry stumbled back into the coliseum, drained and dirty. Josh had already gone back to his home in New York, feeling the effects of the constant exposure to dementors and the repetitive release of high powered magic. But all three men were extremely please—no one more so than Tai. He had successfully managed to pinpoint and close every gap in the barrier, and he could feel it within himself. He felt whole again. For the first time since Moira's death he felt completely content.

"We're back!" He called into the darkened room. He could see a light on in the room ahead and knew the others had waited up to hear the news. Sure enough, Shiva came bounding forth from the lit room and happily latched herself onto his mouth. They broke apart a bit flushed. Tai gazed down at Shiva who was positively glowing. He then gave a sideways glance had Harry. Shiva followed his line of vision.

"Um..." she blushed.

Harry waved them off and smiled. He had already known.

"So this is the British boy! He's a cutie."

Angela had entered, heading strait for their guest.

"I'm Angela," she introduced herself holding out a hand that Harry accepted.

"Harry. But I'm sure you've already heard enough from this one," he replied as he jerked his head towards Shiva. Angela giggled and leaned over to Shiva as Griff introduced himself.

"Love the accent," she murmured. Shiva grinned knowingly.

"So what's the verdict?" Griff asked the million dollar question. Angela and Shiva sprang to attention.

Tai and Harry shared a look, careful to school their features to remain neutral.

"Well!" Shiva prompted.

Tai took a breath and the three other guardians seemed to lean forwards in anticipation.

"Unfortunately..."

Their shoulders sagged.

"...It's done!" Tai said happily, "The barrier's whole again. I think we can trust the Ministry of Magic to prevent the dementors from further free reign?" He directed the last part towards Harry.

"I would think so;" Harry said just as merrily, "The new minister seems to be much more competent."

Both boys suddenly found themselves in a world of pain with two steaming females standing over them, fists raised.

"DON'T DO THAT, DAMNIT!"

"ARE YOU TRYING TO GIVE ME GREY HAIRS?"

Harry and Tai pouted from their places on the ground, nursing the bumps on their heads. Griff, no pleased with being strung on like that, felt no pity for them.

"In that case...I'm going to bed." He declared. Angela ran after him, naughty ideas racing through her head.

"Bed does sound good," Tai said. The clock on the overhead wall said that it was nearing one in the morning, "Let's get you back home."

Harry grinned and stood, rubbing his battered head once more.

They walked to Ace's room. The giant computer sprang to life as they entered.

"Well, I would say it was a pleasure working with you but..." Tai trailed off sheepishly.

"...It wasn't all that much fun," Harry finished with a smirk.

"Thanks," Tai said, holding out his hand. Harry gripped it back with a firm shake.

"No problem."

"Bye Harry," Shiva stepped up and gave him a hug. There was nothing sexual about it, which had to have been a first for Shiva, "Take care of yourself, okay?"

"Yeah."

Harry pulled away from her.

"So...I just...walk into the light. Right?"

Shiva laughed.

"Yes," Tai said. Harry bid them one last goodbye before he stepped out of the digital world.

Shiva looked at Tai, who looked back at her. Nothing needed to be said between them. Tai wrapped and arm around her shoulders and she put an arm around his waist and the two made their way back to their bedroom.

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Yay! The day is saved! Surprise, surprise. This story is just about done. I'll have an epilogue, don't worry. Thanks for the reviews peepers; I know I'm really slow at getting these out. But hey, I'm actually dedicating myself to school...somewhat.

Anyhoo, hit that review button. Right there on the bottom. It says 'go'. Ya can't miss it.


	22. Epilogue: The Double Life

**Epilogue**

"YOU WANT TO WHAT?" Shiva's yell reverberated around the open training grounds of the coliseum. A cluster of birds took flight from a tree overhead, leaving dark, moving shadows to wash over the pair.

"Move back to the real world," Tai repeated calmly; his voice was surprisingly steady for someone who was swinging around a sword. Shiva could only stare at him with wide, disbelieving eyes as she tried to process the sentence in her brain.

"But why?" she asked, her voice sounding pained, "What's wrong with here? This is our home, isn't it? "

Tai sighed and straitened his stance; his sword held limply by his side.

"Of course it is. And you know I don't honestly want to go back there but the digital world isn't in any immediate danger and I really want Chelsea to grow up and go to school with other children her age."

"Tai," Shiva started deprecatingly, "I think she's going to have a hard time fitting in with a bunch of human kids."

Tai chucked and pulled her up against his sweaty body.

"Ewww..." she sniggered in a half-assed attempt to get away from him. He kissed her temple and pulled away to look at her face.

"I've thought this through, ok? I've sent Piximon on an errand to create a bracelet that will work much the same way our rings do. I can rent an apartment and get a job with that inner complex of the government—you know the one that's always studying the digital world and how to access it? They'll need me. Shouldn't be too hard since they already know who I am after all the times Digimon have wreaked havoc in the real world."

"You'll become like...an ambassador?" The young woman asked with a raised eyebrow.

Tai pouted at her seemingly lack of faith.

"What? You think I can't do it?"

"Actually...I can see that...but..." she trailed off looking a bit unsure of herself. She fidgeted and watched her fingers twist around themselves. Tai's brow creased and he lifted her chin a bit so that he could look her in the eye.

"But what?" he asked softly, sensing her faintly distressed condition.

"But what about me?" she asked. Tai looked at her as though she were stupid.

"You're coming with me, of course!"

Shiva's eyes widened.

"Eh? Really?"

Tai smiled warmly at her and she felt her knees weaken.

"Yes, really. You're going wherever I go. We're a family now remember? What would Chelsea do without her mother?"

Shiva felt like she had swallowed a large, rough ball and it had lodged itself in her throat. Her eyes were stinging and she was aware that her face felt damp. Was it raining? It took the warm fingers of Tai brushing away the wetness to realize she was crying.

"Are you alright?" he asked, concerned. She wasn't able to speak so she just nodded and hugged him tightly. She thought it was strange how it was never sadness or anger that could make her cry, but happiness.

"Come on," he said, pulling her with him into the coliseum, "We have some plans to make."

Indeed they did. There were guardians to be informed, negotiations to be made with the government, real-estate to acquire, and family members to reconcile with.

0o0o0o0o

* * *

0o0o0o0o

**2 Months Later...**

"So you're really going huh?" Griff asked with soft, dark eyes as he took in the pile of packed bags besides the feet of the couple. He and Tai had spent the last couple of weeks moving furniture into the apartment Tai purchased not long ago.

Shiva stood nearby Tai holding Chelsea who was too occupied with the shiny silver bracelet clasped securely onto her pudgy wrist to notice that her fangs were dull and human and the wings on her back were absent.

"Hey. I've got a computer you know." Tai grinned, clapping a hand on the taller boy's broad shoulder, "It will be on twenty-four seven, so I'll be here half the time anyway. You won't even miss me."

"I don't know..." Angela said, "This whole place just for the two of us? What are we going to do?"

There was a brief silence as the four stared at each other before they all burst out laughing.

"Hey," Shiva warned, "stay out of our room. We'll still be sleeping there when we come back here."

"Sure, sure," Angela said unconvincingly. Tai smiled at his 'family' and put a hand on Shiva's shoulder.

"Ready to go?" he asked. Shiva nodded, saying her goodbyes to the other two.

"Bye. I'll visit tomorrow, alright?" Shiva said, giving Angela a one-armed hug with her other arm being occupied with Chelsea who was happily sucking her thumb.

"You better," the blonde said with a weary smile. She was going to miss that sassy bitch. She loved Griff, she did, but she sometimes she just really needed another woman around.

"I'll get the bags, you hold onto her," Tai instructed while nodding to his daughter and grabbing all the handles of their suitcases. The pair of guardians cast one last farewell before stepping into the portal Ace provided.

The first thing Shiva noted upon landing was the hardwood floors. She liked hardwood floors. She took in her surroundings while bouncing her adoptive daughter on her hip. She was in a sparsely furnished living room that was lit by the large window over looking the city. She could see the open kitchen from where she stood. To her left was the door exiting the apartment and to her right was a hallway that led down to a bathroom and two bedrooms.

"Wow..." Shiva breathed. "This is ours?"

"Yep." Tai grinned, releasing the bags and allowing them to tumble all over the floor.

"How did you afford it?" she asked her green eyes large and wondering.

"Trust me," he winked, "my salary is nothing to scoff at."

Shiva gasped, ignoring Chelsea's fingers that were tugging at her ponytail.

"You really got the job?"

"I really got the job."

Shiva's face started to brighten before her expression froze, and a more contemplative look took over. She gave him a hard stare.

"It's the government. It shouldn't have been that easy to get a job that deep into it. You knew something beforehand, didn't you?"

Tai closed his eyes and grinned. She was a pervert, but a very astute pervert, and he loved her for it.

"Myotismon was the first digimon who publicly tried to destroy the world. The news captured all of us digidestined fighting him, and openly depicted me as the leader. The government had known about the digital world for years but couldn't access it and our existence just proved to them that it was possible for humans to travel there. That was when the government first approached me about working with them. Every other time a digimon threatened the world in the face of the public they would approach me again and again, with higher and higher bribes." He chuckled a little at this. "Anyway, let's just say they were more than happy to accept me into their firm when I offered to work for them."

"Why did you wait until now to take the job?" Shiva asked, impressed by his story, "Sounds like it pays well."

"I was just a kid. All I wanted was to play soccer. That, and I was afraid that I didn't have the diplomatic aptitude to keep them from taking advantage of me and putting the digital world in more danger."

"And that's changed?" she asked wryly.

"Well I'm older now...and I have more confidence in my leadership abilities. I know what I'm doing," he said with assurance.

"Hmmm," she said, pursing her lips before smiling at him lazily.

"What?" Tai asked. He glared at the expression on her face; there was something familiar about it. Shiva smirked at him. She kissed Chelsea on the cheek and set her down in her play pen that was already set up.

She turned to her boyfriend with her hands on her hips, leering.

"Well, don't you think we should christen our new home?"

The brown-haired boy stared blankly at her for approximately 1.8 seconds before his eyes widened and a silly grin spread across his face. The two raced to their new bedroom, pushing and giggling all the way down the hall.

He knew it wouldn't be easy to live two lives: that of the politician of the real world, and that of the guardian of the digital world. But he also knew the support of his family and friends, and his love and his child, would help him over come any obstacles that got in his way.

But despite having the crest of courage, but it wouldn't be until a couple of more years until he would manage to ask Shiva to marry him, and be his mate.

0o0o0o0o

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0o0o0o0o

THE END

It's short, happy, and to the point. Not really imaginative, I know, but I really have no interest in digimon anymore so forgive me for neglecting this story so much. I won't be doing any more digimon stuff, but all the original characters are yours to use, so is the plot line, so feel free to help your self.

Thank you to all those who reviewed, and all those who gave your secret support, however you may have done that, and thanks for putting up with those looong looong waits.


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